Citation: Sandeep S. Ghandat & Ors. v. Reserve Bank of India & Ors., 2026 INSC 955 (Civil Appeal Nos. 5351–5352 of 2025)
The Supreme Court held that the Reserve Bank of India’s power to supersede a multi-State co-operative bank’s board under Section 36AAA of the Banking Regulation Act, 1949, is not limited by the six-month cap in Article 243ZL(1) of the Constitution.
The Court ruled that successive supersession orders can extend up to a five-year aggregate. Furthermore, the expiration of the board’s original statutory tenure does not invalidate these extensions, because the administrator is only mandated to hold elections upon the expiration of the supersession period specified by the RBI.
Finally, the Court clarified that the statutory requirement for State Government consultation applies exclusively to uni-State co-operative banks, leaving multi-State entities outside its scope.
