State Co-operative Election Authority (SCEA)
The State Co-operative Election Authority (SCEA) is the Maharashtra government body created under Section 73-CB of the MCS Act to independently conduct and supervise elections for all co-operative societies in the state, including housing societies.
What is State Co-operative Election Authority (SCEA)?
Before 2013, housing society elections were often run informally by the outgoing committee, leading to widespread disputes, proxy manipulation, and illegitimate committees. The 97th Constitutional Amendment and Section 73-CB of the MCS Act 1960 transferred election authority to the SCEA — a dedicated, independent body analogous to an Election Commission for co-operative societies.
The SCEA deputes a Returning Officer for each society's election. The Returning Officer issues the election schedule, receives nominations, scrutinises candidate eligibility, conducts the secret ballot, and declares results.
Why it matters
Any election not conducted by or under the supervision of the SCEA is void. An informally elected committee — even if all members agreed to the result — is not legally valid and will be flagged by the statutory auditor in Form J.
The SCEA process creates a clear paper trail: the E-2 intimation, the election schedule, the nomination forms, the ballot count, and the result notification to the Registrar. This trail is the defence against any future challenge to the committee's legitimacy.
Legal & regulatory context
Section 73-CB, MCS Act 1960, as amended by the Maharashtra Co-operative Societies (Amendment) Act 2013. The SCEA operates through District Co-operative Election Officers and Ward Co-operative Election Officers who depute Returning Officers for individual society elections.
Societies with more than 200 members must file E-2 intimation with the District/Taluka/Ward Co-operative Election Officer six months before term expiry. Smaller societies follow a simplified process through their local Ward Election Officer.
How SocietyBee handles it
SocietyBee does not interact directly with the SCEA portal, but the platform's member register gives the committee the exact membership count — critical for determining which tier of the SCEA process applies and how many committee seats are required under bye-law 114.
Try SocietyBee free →Frequently asked questions
Does the SCEA conduct elections for all housing societies or only large ones?
All registered co-operative housing societies in Maharashtra, regardless of size. The process varies slightly — smaller societies may have a simpler ward-level officer involvement — but no society can run its own election independent of the SCEA.
How does a society contact the SCEA?
By filing the E-2 Intimation Form with the local District, Taluka, or Ward Co-operative Election Officer six months before the committee's term expires. The Election Officer then assigns a Returning Officer.