Calcutta High Court asserts government lacks blanket authority over all institutions in India, rejecting Election Commission’s bid to requisition district cooperative bank employees for election duties. Justice Bhattacharyya emphasizes banks’ independence from government control as basis for refusal.
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KOLKATA: Recently, The Calcutta High Court emphasized that the government of India does not possess a comprehensive power over every institution within the country. The court’s ruling came in response to a contention by the Election Commission of India (ECI) that employees of two district cooperative banks should be requisitioned for election duties. Justice Sabyasachi Bhattacharyya, while rejecting the ECI’s argument, stated that since the banks in question were not funded or controlled by the central or state government, their employees could not be compelled to perform such tasks.
The High Court’s decision was made during the consideration of a series of petitions filed by employees of the Malda District Central Cooperative Bank and the Mugberia Central Cooperative Bank. These employees, represented by various associations, challenged the ECI’s decision to requisition them for poll duties in the ongoing Lok Sabha elections.
The court pointed out that Section 159 of the Representation of the People Act empowers the ECI to requisition public servants for election duties. However, this provision refers specifically to persons working in institutions established under the Central or State Act or those controlled and funded by the government. Justice Bhattacharyya noted that Article 324(1) of the Constitution of India grants powers to the ECI to request the Governor of a state to provide staff for election duties. However, this provision does not specify the nature of the employees or the institutions from which they should be drawn.
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The judge further observed that the ECI failed to produce any evidence demonstrating that the cooperative banks employing the petitioners were either controlled or financed by the central or state government. The banks were merely registered under the West Bengal Cooperative Societies Act of 2006, without direct funding or control from the government. The court clarified that registration subjected these societies to the provisions of the statute, but it did not imply establishment by or under the statute.
Consequently, the Calcutta High Court concluded that the employees of these cooperative banks cannot be compelled to perform election duties.
The court explicitly stated-
“The cooperative bank where the members of petitioner no. 1-Association are employed is not subject to Section 159 of the RP Act. Consequently, the employees of this bank cannot be mandated or appointed under the authority exercised by the ECI, either through Article 324 of the Constitution of India or Section 159 of the RP Act, for conducting elections.”
As a result, the court ordered the authorities to take necessary measures to ensure that employees of these banks are not requisitioned for election duties in the future. However, the court clarified that it would not withdraw the election duties already assigned to the employees for the current election season, as doing so could disrupt the electoral process.
The court stated-
“The mentioned observations will only be implemented from the upcoming elections. Regarding the ongoing election process, the requisitions or appointments of the members of the petitioner Association will be considered valid to ensure the ongoing Parliamentary Elections proceed smoothly.”
The plea was disposed of by the Calcutta High Court with these observations.
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- Advocates Abhimanyu Banerjee, Arnab Saha, Kamal Krishna Pathak, Rimpy Mukherjee, and Narayan Nayak represented the petitioners, who are employees of the cooperative banks.
- Advocates Joydip Kar and Anuran Samanta appeared on behalf of the Election Commission of India (ECI).
Case Title:
Malda District Central Cooperative Bank Employees Association vs ECI
