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No clarity yet on local body polls
Dilemma over the method of electing sarpanches directly or indirectly continues, though the elections to the rural local bodies are three months away.
Hyderabad: Dilemma over the method of electing sarpanches directly or indirectly continues, though the elections to the rural local bodies are three months away.
As the draft Bill of the new PR Act has not been made public, people and other stakeholders of rural local bodies are in a tight spot on the method of election. The stand of the government on the system of electing the sarpanch is also not clear.
The government has proposed major changes to the Panchayat Raj Act and proposed a Bill in this regard. The Bill is likely to be placed in the Assembly in the coming budget session. The bill contains the rules pertaining to the method of election of sarpanches.The present Act states that the election should be held in direct method without party symbols.
Voters of the panchayat would elect the sarpanch directly. The 73 and 74 amendments to the constitution have made it mandatory to elect the sarpanch in direct method without party symbols. However, though the official stand has not been stated, the government proposed indirect method of election for the sarpanch post.
It has been proposed that sarpanch should be elected from one of the ward members elected by voters of the panchayat. It has also been also proposed to hold elections of ward members with party symbols. It means that the sarpanch will be elected on party basis.
The Telangana State Election Commission (TSEC) has decided to hold the elections to the rural local bodies, Zilla Parishads, Mandal Parishads and Gram Panchayats in May this year.
The term of the existing bodies will end by August and the TSEC wants to complete the elections three months earlier than the end of the term.
Still it is not clear from the government side whether the election to sarpanch post would be held in direct or in indirect method and with party symbols or without them. Those who have been preparing for the gram panchayat elections are in confusion as they are unable to decide on how to face the election.
Whether the government proposes to hold the election of the sarpanch through indirect method could be known only after the Bill is presented in the Assembly and any change of system would come into force only after the passage of the Bill. The delay in passing the new PR Bill in the Assembly has also held up creation of new panchayats in the State.
The bill contains the guidelines of creation of new panchayats. Once the Bill is passed and the Act comes into effect, panchayats should be formed according to the rules prescribed by it.
