Can you ride your bike on West Bengal on April 28 and April 29? Here is exactly what the court has ruled

With West Bengal’s second phase of polling on April 29, a key question has emerged for millions of daily commuters and two-wheeler users — are you allowed to ride your motorcycle on election day, or not?

The Calcutta High Court has now given a clear answer, after a division bench modified an earlier single judge order that had lifted the Election Commission of India’s blanket restrictions on motorcycle riding during polling.

What is allowed

Individual riders can ride their motorcycles freely on polling day. Pillion travel for family members for essential purposes is permitted. App-based delivery personnel — Swiggy, Zomato, and similar platforms — are exempt. Office-goers carrying valid identification are allowed to ride. Emergency travel is fully permitted.

What is not allowed

No organised bike rallies or processions are permitted from two days before polling — that is, from April 27 onwards. No coordinated group riding of motorcycles is allowed during the same period. Political campaigns using bike convoys are effectively prohibited.

How did this ruling come about

The Election Commission had originally issued orders on April 20 and 21 restricting motorcycle riding and pillion travel from two days before polling through election day itself. A petitioner, Ritankar Das, challenged these restrictions in the Calcutta High Court, arguing that a blanket ban on riding violated fundamental rights and had no backing under the Representation of the People Act, 1951.

The single judge agreed, ruling that authorities cannot impose blanket restrictions on motorcycle riding in the name of free and fair polls. The ECI then challenged that order before a division bench of Justices Shampa Sarkar and Ajay Kumar Gupta.

The division bench struck a middle path — it upheld the individual rider relaxations granted by the single judge but tightened the language specifically on group and rally riding, substituting one clause to explicitly ban bike rallies and coordinated group riding from April 27 onwards.

What this means in plain terms

If you are heading out alone or with a family member for work, essential errands or an emergency on April 29, you can ride your bike. If you are part of a political convoy or a group of riders moving together in a coordinated manner, you cannot.

The court also clarified that its directions apply only to the 2026 election process, and that the broader legal question of how far the Election Commission can go in regulating vehicular movement has been left open for future adjudication.