Ignoring pressing problems and issues confronting panchayats and their functioning, the government has instead mooted a
radical change in the way elections are being conducted at the grassroots level. The government is pushing for local governance along narrow, party lines. But it has not been all smooth sailing.
A few panchayats have recently passed resolutions at their gram sabhas opposing the government’s proposal.
Ten members of the South Zilla Panchayat at a meeting also opposed the government’s plan. The Chief Minister, they felt, was misguiding the people. What they want is for the government to give them the powers due to them.
Constitutional expert Amrut Kansar doesn’t believe elections at the panchayat level along party affiliations
will be healthy for the State and its people. Society, at least at the village level, should remain intact, he says.
“Once party differences crop up, this will lead to divisions within families and society. Community bonds will be
broken.” If parties fight elections on the basis of economic planning, then things could be different. “Unfortunately
each party is fighting the election using character assassination. Where is the sanctity in elections today?” he
asks. Nelly Rodrigues, South Goa Zilla panchayat chairperson finds this sudden proposed amendment highly suspect.
She believes that people’s views should be taken into consideration before any amendment is implemented.
She says, “It should be a bottom up approach. Let’s not forget that in a democracy people’s opinion is
supreme.” She fears that elections along party lines will only lead to too much interference from political parties
and inefficient and corrupt individuals will be put forward and will end up being a burden on the people.
In April last year the Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar was upbraided for his disregard of gram sabhas. He felt
that they enjoyed merely an ‘advisory capacity’ within the panchayati raj system and were at best meant to play
‘watchdog’ over the functioning of local bodies. Activists across the board argued that gram sabhas have a right
to decide on the development of their respective villages.
Dr Dattaram Desai, an Aam Aadmi Party supporter says his village was able to resist the hazardous Nylon 6,
6 project back in 1995 because of a decision taken by the gram sabha. The decision was taken as final and cases
were then withdrawn and the villagers emerged victorious. As a telling example, he emphasizes the ‘ideal’
panchayat of Hiware Bazaar in Amednagar, Maharashtra where all decisions for the village are taken by the
gram sabha. “Government officers have to attend and answer questions as ultimately it is they who are accountable.
The 73rd amendment gives villagers the power to throw out a project that is harmful to them,” explains
Dr Desai. Educationist Prabhakar Timble feels the further politics is kept from the functioning of the panchayat, the
more conducive the environment will be for social and economic development.
John Fernandes, president of the
Goa Pradesh Congress Committee
(GPCC) also looks askance at the BJP’s
proposed amendment. He predicts
the system will be made a mockery
of if certain rules aren’t put in place
to curb party defections first. He says,
“The Parliament and State Assembly
have anti-defection laws. The Canadian
Parliament has an ethics committee
and defection is considered as
unprincipled. An ethics committee
should be first formed here to control
defection.”
When asked about the many panchayats
that take pride in the fact that
they are still able to function independently
today and don’t want politics
to infiltrate into the system at the
village level, Fernandes asserted that
such independence should be encouraged.
He said, “People’s wishes should
be taken into consideration. If people
are for the amendment then we will
support them.”
Deputy sarpanch of Carmona Orlando
Da Silva believes that there are
many people who want to function
independently and don’t want to align
with any political party. “Are they supposed
to fall at the feet of politicians?
I believe panchayat matters shouldn’t
be mixed with party politics,” he says.
The government, he feels, is sidestepping
many pressing issues, pointing
out that absolutely nothing is being
done by it to acquire land in
villages for the locals. “With rates
soaring, villagers aren’t able to buy
even 100 sq mtrs of land,” he says.
Minister for panchayats Laxmikant
Parsekar however insists that this
amendment is necessary and will help
bring stability to panchayats. By adhering
to the old Act, when a sarpanch
was elected directly, there was little
chance of him being overthrown. He
would work for five years unless he
was disqualified on some grounds.
The most popular excuse used today
by panch members to overthrow their
sarpanch is “we have not been taken
into confidence”. Da Silva adds that a
panch member should be made to
prove how the sarpanch defaulted.
Other problems being conveniently
overlooked by the government are
that of panchayats receiving minimal
finances and not having permanent
secretaries. The Anjuna panchayat, for
instance, has seen six secretaries in a
span of two years. This has seriously
impacted the functioning of the panchayat.
Secretaries holding additional
charge can devote at best only two
days each week to their panchayats.
Besides, the government doesn’t support
the panchayat when it asks for
police protection to carry out inspections
into illegal constructions.
Alakananda Shringare, assistant
professor of political science at Goa
University cannot understand why
the government is so keen on this
amendment. “There’s no guarantee
that the amendment will bring about
stability,” she says. “There has to be a
reason for an amendment. What’s the
government’s reason? Politics will enter
into the system and impact the
functioning of the panchayat. The
panchayat has so many other problems
such as devolution of powers, finances
and accountability that need
more attention. It’s not fair that while
the voice of the MLAs is being heard,
that of the people is ignored.”
Royla Fernandes, the former
sarpanch of Benaulim says this proposed
amendment goes against the
very grain of local self- governance
that came through Gandhi. Should this
be implemented, she says we will be
controlled by politicians “right from
the Centre to the grassroots and the
concept of the gram will be lost. Once
parties come into the picture, the
agenda will be that of the MLA’s and
the views of the villagers will not be
taken into consideration.” She contends
that political interference can
at least be controlled to some extent
now, but once this move is legitimized
then it will become the system itself.
Deputy sarpanch of Anjuna Patrick
Almeida believes that the amendment,
should it come about, will turn
panchayats into dictatorships with the
MLAs dictating terms to the panch
members. “It will no longer be panchayati
raj but minister’s raj,” he says.
“We treat all our villagers the same.
But this will change if we have elections
on party lines.”
Soter D’souza, executive coordinator,
department of governance of CSJP,
believes people left to themselves will
do a better job. This is the government’s
modus operandi, he asserts,
to maintain a complete hold over the
people by putting their cadres into
the very last leg of the system. Fearing
it will only bring about more chaos,
he says it will “legitimize the nuisance
caused by politicians in the panchayats.”
Review Bureau
