Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Oct 29: Former minister and senior Congress leader, Raman Bhalla has said that elections are long overdue for Panchayats and Urban Local Bodies (ULB) but the State Government which is in deep slumber, has not shown much interest for its conduct and due to this reason, Central funds worth hundreds of crores have been denied to the State.
Addressing public meeting at Nanak Nagar in Gandhi Nagar constituency today,
Bhalla said Central Government has suspended its financial grant for these local governing bodies because of the delay in elections. The State Election Commission has not been constituted yet as per the Panchayati Raj Act.
Bhalla said the State will lose funds worth Rs 4,000 crore of 14th Finance Commission if the polls are not held shortly. The funds consist of more than Rs 3,117 crore for Panchayats and Rs 1,044 crore for Urban Civic bodies, Jammu and Kashmir has two Municipal Corporations, six Municipal Councils, 72 Municipal Committees and 3,200 Panchayats, all of which have no elected representatives and have stopped receiving Central funds.
The Panchayati Raj Act 2011 enjoins upon State Governments to set up a State Election Commission that is to be headed by a retired IAS officer or an official not below the rank of Commissioner/Secretary with experience in conduct of polls. The commission’s mandate is to conduct local polls, including trade body elections. In the absence of the regulatory body, the State Govt has vested these powers in itself by announcing the polls.
Bhalla further said that the Government does not want to conduct polls in time because it will split its power. “Right now, the Government has no constitutional binding to conduct the polls. We have been fighting not just for the setting up of the State Election Commission but also for incorporation of the 73rd Amendment into the Panchayati Raj Act,” he said.
Last year, the Govt was supposed to conduct the polls but the same could not be held due to the public uprising that swept the Valley for months. Then the Govt announced that it will hold the Panchayat polls in March, but did not conduct by that time.
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