On the final day for filing nominations on Monday, 40 candidates submitted 64 nomination papers, with several contestants filing multiple sets of nomination forms. However, several prominent cooperative leaders whose names had been widely discussed as potential candidates ultimately stayed away from the contest.
These include veteran cooperator Chandrapal Singh Yadav, Gujarat-based cooperative leader Ajaybhai Patel, Sahakar Bharati National General Secretary Deepak Chaurasia, and a few others. The elections to the Governing Council of the National Cooperative Union of India (NCUI) is scheduled for July 18, 2026. The list of nominations reveals that five candidates are poised to be elected unopposed, as no rival nominations were filed in their respective constituencies.
If their nomination papers are found valid during the scrutiny being held today (July 7), they will be declared elected unopposed.
The five candidates are G.H. Amin and Sunil Kumar from the State Cooperative Unions & Union Territories Constituency; T. Prasad Dora from the State Cooperative Banks Constituency; Meghnad Pal from the State Cooperative Agriculture and Rural Development Banks Constituency; and Mudit Verma from the State Cooperative Housing Federations and State Housing Finance Societies Constituency.
One of the most closely watched contests is expected in the National Level Cooperative Societies Constituency, where eight candidates are vying for five seats. The constituency has 16 voters.
The candidates are Dileep Sanghani of IFFCO, Bipin Patel of KRIBHCO; Bijay Kumar Singh of the National Housing Federation; Virendra Rana of the National Federation of Cooperative Sugar Factories; Dalip Singh Yadav of NAFCARD; Vishal Singh of NCCF; Mohanbhai Kundariya of NAFED; and Meenesh Shah of NDDB.
Although scrutiny of nominations is being held today, the electoral picture could change further after the withdrawal of nominations on July 8, following which the final list of candidates will be published.
Sources in the cooperative sector believe that some candidates may withdraw to facilitate consensus, potentially increasing the number of seats decided unopposed.
Another key contest is expected in the Multi-State Cooperative Societies Constituency (Western and Southern States & Union Territories), where eight candidates are in the fray for a single seat. The contestants are Nakul Kadu, Sadhana Jadhav, C.B. Jisso, Suresh Wable, G.R. Ravichandran, Sanjay Bhende, Arun Tomar, and Jitendra Jain. This constituency has 28 voters, the majority of whom are from Maharashtra, making the state a decisive factor in the outcome.
In the other Multi-State Cooperative Societies Constituency representing the Northern and Eastern States & Union Territories, the contest is a direct fight between two candidates for one seat. D.N. Thakur, who is leading the Sahakar Bharati panel in the NCUI elections and is a former president of Sahakar Bharati, is pitted against outgoing NCUI director Gurupratap Singh. This constituency has 44 voters, making it one of the most significant contests in the election.
Besides these, discussions are underway to persuade candidates to withdraw in a few other constituencies to facilitate unanimous elections.
(With inputs from Rohit Gupta, Principal Correspondent)
