R.M. Borde, J.

1. Heard. Rule. With the consent of the parties, petition is taken up for final disposal at admission stage.

2. The petitioner is objecting to the action of the Assistant Registrar, Cooperative Societies - Fisheries, Jalna in refusing to accept the proposal of the petitioner for registration of the fishery society. It is not a matter of dispute that as per the Policy framed by the State Government, four societies can be registered taking into consideration the spread area of Kalyan Girija minor irrigation project. It is informed that one society has already been registered; whereas the Assistant Registrar received four proposals for according registration to three societies. The proposal tendered by the petitioner society has not been accepted for the reason that the application was received late i.e. after receipt of three proposals. The Assistant registrar has placed reliance on the Circular dated 24.5.2011 issued by the Deputy Registrar, Cooperative Societies - Fisheries, Maharashtra State, Mumbai which permits receipt of equal number of proposals in proportion with number of societies required to be registered. The learned counsel appearing for the respondents fairly submits that the circular on which reliance is placed has already been directed to be quashed by the Division Bench of this Court while dealing with Writ Petition No. 666 of 2012. The Policy prescribed by the State Government which is latter in point of time i.e. Circulars dated 26.6.2014 & 12.8.2015 do not contain such prohibition and under the Policy, it is obligatory for the Registering Authority to receive all the proposals and consider and evaluate the merit and take appropriate decision in respect of Registration of the proposals. In this view of the matter, considering the Policy of the deportment declared on 26.6.2014 and the circular dated 12.8.2015, it was incumbent upon the Assistant Registrar to accept the proposals received from the Fisheries Cooperative Societies and considered those proposals so received, in accordance with provisions of law within the frame work of the Policy framed by the State Government. The impugned action taken by the Assistant Registrar on 30.1.2016 returning back the proposal dated 15.9.2015 of the petitioner stands quashed and the Assistant Registrar-Cooperative Societies Fisheries Jalna is directed to accept the proposal of the petitioner society and forward the same to the Assistant Commissioner-Fisheries, Jalna, tq. Jalna, Dist. Jalna for his consideration. The concerned authority i.e. respondent No. 3 shall evaluate all the proposals received for according registration and take appropriate decision in accordance with law, rules and Policy framed by the state Government. The petitioner shall re-tender the proposal to the Assistant Registrar Cooperative Societies-Fisheries within a period of 15 days from today.

Rule is made absolute accordingly.