Ahead of the West Bengal Assembly elections 2026, the Calcutta High Court has set aside an Election Commission directive seeking details of cooperative bank employees for election duties, holding that the cooperative sector is autonomous, media reports say.
Justice Krishna Rao quashed the EC’s September 19, 2025 order directing Balageria Central Cooperative Bank to upload employee data on the election portal.
The court ruled that cooperative banks do not fall under Article 324(6) of the Constitution or Sections 26 and 159 of the Representation of the People Act, which permit requisitioning staff only from government-controlled bodies.
It noted that the bank is an autonomous cooperative, managed by an elected board, with employees paid entirely from its own funds and not under state control.