JUDGMENT Achintya Malla Bujor Barua, J. - Heard Mr. Sk. Muktar, learned counsel for the petitioner. Also heard Mr. SK Talukdar, learned wxyz counsel for the Cooperation Department of the Government of Assam and Mr. D Nath, learned Additional Senior Government Advocate, Assam for the Deputy Commissioner, Nalbari. zyxw 2. The Board of Directors of Madhyam Barkhetri Bahumukhi Samabay Samiti Ltd. was elected in the Annual General Meeting of the society held on 03.09.2015. 3. The Section 31 of the Assam Cooperative Society Act, 2007 (in short Act of 2007) provides the term of the Board of Directors to be 5 cooperative years and Section 39 of the Act of 2007 provides that a general meeting to be termed as annual general meeting (in short AGM) of a registered cooperative society shall be held at least once in every cooperative year within a period of 6 (six) months of the previous financial year to transact the businesses as provided in the Act. It further provides that the Board of Directors shall stand dissolved for not holding the AGM in accordance to the provisions of the Act, which has to be at least within 6 months from the expiry of every financial year. Section 41 of the Act of 2007, provides that the superintendence, directions and control of the preparation of electoral rolls and the conduct of the election to a cooperative society shall vest in the Registrar and it shall be the duty of the Registrar to prepare the voters list with eligible members for holding the election. The section 41(2) of the 2007 Act provides that the election of Directors to a Board shall be conducted before the expiry of the term of the Board so as to ensure that the newly elected members of Board assume office immediately on the expiry of office of the outgoing Board. 4. As required under the law, the Board of Management of the Madhyam Barkhetri Bahumukhi Samabay Samiti Ltd., in its meeting held on 10.07.2020 passed a resolution that the AGM and the election of the new Board of Directors would be held on 23.08.2020, but when the said resolution of the Board of Management of the society was placed before the District Administration Nalbari, the permission to hold the AGM and election was not favourably responded. 5. 5. We have read the provision of Section 31 of the Act of 2007 which provides that term of the Board of Directors shall be 5 (five) cooperative years and that under Section 39 if the AGM is not held at least once in every cooperative year the Board shall stand automatically dissolved. We have also taken note of the provisions of Section 41(4) of the Act of 2007 which provides that where a Board fails to arrange for holding the election of the Board of Directors or delegates, as the case may be, before expiry of the term of their office in accordance with the Act and bye-laws, the Directors shall cease to be Directors on the expiry of the period of 5(five) years. 6. Further Section 41(6) provides that where the Board fails to arrange for holding the election before the expiry of term of the Board of Directors or delegates or where there are no Directors remaining on the Board, the Registrar shall convene a general meeting by appointing an officer of the Cooperation Department for constitution of the Board and within 90(ninety) days from the date of such appointment the officer so appointed shall perform all the functions of the Board during the said period of 90 (ninety) days at the cost of the cooperative society concerned. 7. Provisions of Sections 41(4) and 41(6) are extracted as below: wxyz "41(4) Where a Board fails to arrange for holding election of the Directors or delegates, as the case may be, before expiry of the terms of their office in accordance with the Act and bye-laws of the Directors shall cease to be Directors on the expiry of the period as specified in Section 42(1). 41(6) Where a Board fails to arrange for holding election before the expiry of term of the Board or delegates or where there are no Directors remaining on the Board, the Registrar shall convene a General Meeting by appointing an Officer of the Co-operative Department for Constitution of the Board within ninety days from the date of such appointment and the officer so appointed shall perform all functions of the Board during the said period of ninety days at the cost of the Society." zyxw 8. In a similar circumstance, where a cooperative society upon expiry of the term of 5 (five) years was taken over by the Cooperation Department in exercise of powers under Sections 41(4) and 41(6) of the Act of 2007, this Court had passed a judgment dated 30.07.2020 in WP(C)No.2910/2020 wherein a conclusion was arrived at that Sections 41(4) and 41(6) are applicable when the Board of Directors had failed to arrange for holding of election before the expiry of the term of office in accordance with the Act and Bye Laws and the arrangement for holding of the election is a condition precedent for invoking powers under Sections 41(4) and 41(6) of the Act of 2007. In the instant case, we have taken note of that the petitioner Cooperative Society through the resolution dated 10.07.2020 had already resolved to hold the AGM and election on 23.08.2020, but permission thereof had not been accorded by the respondent authorities. In the circumstances, it cannot be construed that the petitioner society had not arranged to hold the AGM and the election. 9. Be that as it may, as it is a statutory requirement to hold the Annual General Meeting and the election before the expiry of the period of 5 (five) years, we direct the respondent authorities in the Cooperation Department as well as the District Administration Nalbari to make necessary arrangement enabling the petitioner society to hold their AGM and the election on or before 03.09.2020. 10. In the event, for some reasons, if it is technically not feasible to hold the election within the said period, the respondent authorities shall do the needful to hold the AGM and the election at any given reasonable date. 11. We also take notice of the prevailing Covid19 pandemic situation and taking note of it, we further provide that while holding the AGM and the election, the respondent authorities including the District Administration Nalbari shall do the needful that all the protocols required to hold such meeting under the Covid19 pandemic shall be followed and strictly imposed for the purpose. In the event the respondent authorities are unable to enable the petitioner society to hold the election on or before 03.09.2020 as provided, the same be done within a reasonable time thereafter, but till such enablement of the petitioner society is made for holding the AGM and the election, no coercive action be taken. 12. In the event the respondent authorities are unable to enable the petitioner society to hold the election on or before 03.09.2020 as provided, the same be done within a reasonable time thereafter, but till such enablement of the petitioner society is made for holding the AGM and the election, no coercive action be taken. 12. The provisions of Section 41(4) and 41(6) of the Act of 2007 shall not be invoked, inasmuch as, a prima facie case has been made out that the petitioner society had already arranged for holding of the election as noted above. 13. Writ petition stands disposed of in the above terms.