VASCO: Panchayat Minister Mauvin Godinho on Friday informed that the State government is mulling video-recording of gram sabha proceedings compulsorily.
He said that soon the Director of Panchayat would start deputing his officers to keep a watch on the proceedings and to analyse the circumstances under which the decisions are taken.
He was speaking to reporters after distributing laptops to the students of Vaddem based St Andrews Higher Secondary School on Friday.
Justifying his refusal to apologise for his statement (as demanded by the opposition Congress party) that the resolutions passed at gram sabhas have no bearing on the government, Mauvin said, “The Congress as opposition is bound to criticise us. That is their job. But I want to clarify that I am not per say against gram sabha. I understand that gram sabhas are important part of functioning of panchayat under the Panchayati Raj Act, but it does not mean that a small group of crowd gathers and hold the whole village to ransom by passing resolutions which actually is not the wish of the people in the area and that is what is happening.”
He alleged that a group of people have been going around attending gram sabhas in various villages and forcing their opinion on the local people and misguiding them. “This is what I oppose. Is there anything wrong in opposing such activities?” he questioned
For this reason, Mauvin said, the government was examining the legality and feasibility of recording the gram sabha proceedings. “Soon we will start deputing an officer to keep a watch on the proceedings and to analyse the circumstances under which the decisions are taken. We want the gram sabhas to function ideally in a manner they are meant for. We are not adverse to criticisms or anything being said against any decision by the government,” he said.
