Union Territories & Panchayats
(1) State law may create offences and penalties relating to co-operative societies. (2) Such a law must include as offences: wilfully making false returns/information; wilfully disobeying lawful summons/orders; an employer failing to remit deducted co-operative dues within 14 days; an officer/custodian wilfully withholding society property from an authorised person; and adopting corrupt practices around board/office-bearer elections.
This mandates that state co-operative laws criminalise specific serious misconduct - financial dishonesty, obstruction of oversight, and election corruption - ensuring co-operative governance abuses carry real legal consequences, not just internal disciplinary measures.
An employer who deducts money from an employee's salary for a co-operative society (like a loan repayment) but fails to actually hand that money over to the society within 14 days commits a specific offence under this framework.