JUDGMENT : The petitioner-Nedungapra Service Co-operative Bank Ltd. is aggrieved by the issuance of Exts.P2 and P4 proceedings dated 26.05.2018 and 18.06.2018 respectively issued at the instance of the 1st respondent-The Public Information Officer/Assistant Registrar of Co-operative Societies, Ernakulam thereby the petitioner has been directed to make available a copy of the list of members of the petitioner-Co-operative Bank as on 25.05.2018. 2. The prayers in this writ petition (civil) are as follows: “(ii) Call for the records leading to issue Exts.P2 & P4 and quash the same by issuing a writ of certiorari or any other appropriate writ order or direction. (iii) Declare that in view of the Judgment of the Thalapalam SCB case reported in 2013 (4) KHC 131, petitioner is not a public authority and not amenable to the provisions of the RTI Act and cannot collect any information from the bank in order to pass it over to the third respondent. (iv) Grant such other relief as this Hon'ble Court may deem fit and proper in the circumstances of the case.” 3. Heard Sri. P.N. Mohanan, learned counsel appearing for the petitioner and Smt. A.C. Vidhya, learned Government Pleader appearing for the official respondents 1 and 2. In the nature of the orders proposed to be passed in this writ petition, notice to the 3rd respondent is dispensed with. 4. From the materials on record, it appears that the contestant respondent No.3 had submitted Ext.P1 application dated 25.05.2018 before the 1st respondent seeking the following information : xxx xxx 5. The 1st respondent is the notified Public Information Officer attached to the office of the Assistant Registrar of Co-operative Societies (General), Kunnathunadu, Ernakulam in terms of the provisions contained in the Right to Information (RTI) Act, 2005. For collecting the information sought for as per item No.2 of Ext.P1, the 1st respondent had requested the petitioner-Co-operative Society as per Ext.P2 letter dated 26.05.2018, to make available copy of the list of the members of the petitioner-Co-operative Society as on 25.05.2018. The petitioner objected to the said request by filing Ext.P3 dated 05.06.2018. For collecting the information sought for as per item No.2 of Ext.P1, the 1st respondent had requested the petitioner-Co-operative Society as per Ext.P2 letter dated 26.05.2018, to make available copy of the list of the members of the petitioner-Co-operative Society as on 25.05.2018. The petitioner objected to the said request by filing Ext.P3 dated 05.06.2018. Taking the stand that the said information sought for by the 1st respondent is not one that is obliged to be maintained by the 1st respondent as per the provisions contained in the Act, Rules, Government Circulars, Government Orders etc., it is contended by the petitioner that there is no question of making available the said information. Thereafter, the 1st respondent has again requested the petitioner-Co-operative Bank by issuing Ext.P4 letter dated 18.06.2018, wherein, it has been intimated that under the mandatory provisions contained in Rule 33(4) of the Kerala Cooperative Societies Rules, 1969 framed under the enabling provisions contained in the Kerala Co-operative Societies Act, 1969, every Co-operative Society is obliged to maintain a list of its members as on the last day of the Co-operative year concerned and that a Co-operative Society is obliged to make available copies of such list to the members concerned. It is the proceedings at Exts.P2 and P4 that are under challenge in the above writ petition. 6. The specific contention raised by Sri.P.N.Mohanan, learned counsel appearing for the petitioner-Co-operative Society is to the effect that the information sought for as per item No.2 of Ext.P1 is not something which is obliged to be maintained by the office of the 1st respondent. Therefore, it is argued by the petitioner that going by the legal principles laid down by the Apex Court and by this Court in the matter of disclosure of information under the RTI Act by the Co-operative Societies, the said information is not a disclosable one. There cannot be any doubt that in the light of the decision of the Apex Court in Thalappalam Service Cooperative Bank Limited and others v. State of Kerala and others reported in (2013) 16 SCC 82, a co-operative society like the present petitioner would not fulfil the definition of “public autority” as defined in Section 2(h) of the RTI Act. There cannot be any doubt that in the light of the decision of the Apex Court in Thalappalam Service Cooperative Bank Limited and others v. State of Kerala and others reported in (2013) 16 SCC 82, a co-operative society like the present petitioner would not fulfil the definition of “public autority” as defined in Section 2(h) of the RTI Act. ““public authority” under Section 2(h) of the Right to Information Act, 2005 (for short “the RTI Act”) and be bound by the obligations to provide information sought for by a citizen under the RTI Act.” However, an interested person can maintain an application under RTI Act for disclosure of information’s from the notified Public Information Officers attached to the offices of Assistant Registrar, Joint Registrar of Co-operative Societies in the Co-operative Department of the State Government, so long as the information is one in relation to a Co-operative Society which is obliged to be maintained by the Co-operative Department officials concerned. Such an information pertaining to a Co-operative Society which is obliged to be maintained by the officials of the Co-operative Department of the Government, like the 1st respondent, would be sought for by maintaining an application under the RTI Act before the notified Public Information Officers attached to the offices of the Co-operative Department, in terms of the provisions contained in the RTI Act. There cannot be any dispute on these aspects. Reference in this connection would be made to the decisions of this Court in Thrissur District Co-op. Bank, Thrissur v. State Information Commission, Tvm and another reported in 2017 (2) KHC 1 , Tomy T.J. v. State of Kerala and another reported in 2017 (2) KHC 841 and Puthiyatheru Urban Co-operative Society Ltd. v. Joint Registrar of Co-operative Societies (General), Kannur and others reported in 2017 (2) KHC 838 . 7. As regards the factual aspects covering item No.2 of Ext.P1, it would be profitable to refer to the provisions contained in Rule 33(4) of the Kerala Co-operative Societies Rules, 1969 framed under the enabling provisions contained in the Kerala Co-operative Societies Act, 1969. Rule 33(4) reads as follows : “(4) Every Co-operative society shall prepare a list of its members as on the last day of each Co-operative year. The list shall be kept open at the office of the society during office hours for inspection by any member of the society free of cost.” 8. Rule 33(4) reads as follows : “(4) Every Co-operative society shall prepare a list of its members as on the last day of each Co-operative year. The list shall be kept open at the office of the society during office hours for inspection by any member of the society free of cost.” 8. It is the specific query raised by this Court, the learned counsel for the petitioner as well as the learned Government Pleader has submitted before this Court that the co-operative year is to tally with the financial year concerned. Therefore, in the instant case, the request made for is in respect of the list of members as on 25.05.2018 and therefore, the co-operative year concerned is for the period from 01.04.2017 to 31.03.2018. Hence, going by the mandate of sub-rule 4 of Rule 33, the petitioner-Co-operative Society is obliged to keep and publish list of its members as on 31.03.2018. Sri.P.N.Mohanan, learned counsel appearing for the petitioner would submit that going by the wordings through Rule 33(4), there is no mandate therein that the Co-operative Society concerned has to necessarily forward a copy of the same to the Assistant Registrar or Joint Registrar of the Co-operative Societies concerned and that all what is required to be done as per the Rule is that the said list should be made available in the office of the society during office hours for inspection by any member of the society free of cost. This Court is not prepared to countenance the said hyper-technical argument raised on behalf of the petitioner-Society. When the Rule mandates that every Co-operative Society will have to prepare and publish list of its members as on the last day of each co-operative year concerned, such vital information should also necessarily be conveyed by that society to the supervisory officer concerned of the Co-operative Department. 9. The list of members of a Co-operative Society as mandated in Rule 33(4) is a very vital document touching the very existence and functioning of that society and such a vital document should necessarily be maintained in the office of the Assistant Registrar/Joint Registrar concerned. The Co-operative Society has a duty to ensure that such a list for the co-operative year concerned is made available to the above officials of the Co-operative Department. The Co-operative Society has a duty to ensure that such a list for the co-operative year concerned is made available to the above officials of the Co-operative Department. If a society does not care to furnish such a vital list to the Co-operative Department of the Government, then those officials in their capacities as the notified Registrar can direct the society to forthwith furnish such a list on its preparation and publication, by exercising their supervisory powers under Section 66 of the Act. In such a scenario, the society will be obliged to furnish the same to the Department. 10. In the instant case, it is not in dispute that the 1st respondent-Assistant Registrar of Co-operative Societies (General), Kunnathunadu, Ernakulam is notified with the powers of the Registrar, Co-operative Societies under Sections 29(2), 30, 63, 64, 65, 66, 67, 69, 70, 75 and 76 of the Kerala Co-operative Societies Act, 1969. In this context, it is also relevant to bear in mind that Section 3 of the Kerala Co-operative Societies Act provides as follows : “3. Registrar:-(1) The Government may appoint a person to be the Registrar of Co-operative Societies for the State. (2) The Government may by general or special order confer on any person all or any of the powers of the Registrar under this Act.” 11. It is a common ground, that notification has been issued by the competent authority of the State Government under the enabling provisions contained in Section 3(2) of the Act, whereby, the abovesaid powers of the Registrar of Co-operative Societies have been conferred on an official, like the Assistant Registrar of Co-operative Societies. Section 66 of the Act confers powers on the Registrar in the matters of supervision and inspection. As noted herein above, the powers under Section 69 has also been delegated to the Assistant Registrar of Co-operative Societies by virtue of the abovesaid notification issued under Section 3(2) of the Act. Section 66 of the Act confers powers on the Registrar in the matters of supervision and inspection. As noted herein above, the powers under Section 69 has also been delegated to the Assistant Registrar of Co-operative Societies by virtue of the abovesaid notification issued under Section 3(2) of the Act. Therefore, in a case where, the Co-operative Society does not furnish a copy of the list of members as on the end of a co-operative year concerned, then an officer like the 1st respondent-Assistant Registrar is obliged to ensure that a copy of the said list is kept in his office and if the copy is not furnished by the Co-operative Society like the petitioner, then the 1st respondent can certainly exercise his supervisory powers under the Act to call for such documents. Therefore, to contend that the Assistant Registrar has no power to call for the abovesaid list of members, is patently untenable and unsustainable. Therefore, the substantial challenge as against Exts.P2 and P4 cannot be countenanced. However, the direction in Exts.P2 and P4 to the petitioner is to make available a copy of the list of the members as on 25.05.2018. What is obligated by the mandatory provisions contained in Rule 33(4) is for the Co-operative Society concerned to prepare and publish list of its members as on 31.03.2018 as far as the co-operative year, 2017-18 is concerned. The next list for 2018-19 is to be prepared and published only after 31.03.2019. Therefore, the direction in Ext.P4 to the limited extent, it requires the furnishing of the list of members as on 25.05.2018, is not fully justified in law. In that view of the matter, it is ordered that Exts.P2 and P4 is partly upheld and the same would stand set aside to the limited extent, it directs the petitioner-Society to make available a copy of the list of members as on 25.05.2018. The petitioner-Co-operative Society shall without fail ensure that an authenticated copy of the list of members of the petitioner-Co-operative Society as on 31.03.2018 furnished to the 1st respondent-Assistant Registrar within 10 days. With these observations and directions, the above Writ Petition (Civil) will stand finally disposed of.