Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Mar 16: Reacting strongly against the proposed Government move of giving high status and protocol to the recently elected District Development Councils (DDCs) in Jammu and Kashmir, chairpersons of Block Development Councils and Sarpanchs have threatened to launch an agitation if only one tier of PRI is empowered and other two tiers are left.
While addressing a press conference after having detailed meeting with BDC chairpersons and Sarpanchs, Shafiq Mir chairman All J&K Panchayat Conference (AJKPC) said that they were feeling deceived as the Government seems to be succumbing to the pressure of `political mafia’ which has entered in third- tier of PRI system in Jammu and Kashmir after they were left jobless since J&K became UT.
Shafiq said that it was the same “political mafia” that has always been against the Panchayati Raj system in the erstwhile State of Jammu and Kashmir. He said all these political parties had boycotted the first tier (Sarpanchs and Panchs) elections held in Jammu and Kashmir in 2018 and they had again boycotted the second tier Panchayat elections (Block Development Councils) held in 2019.
” Despite their boycott people of Jammu and Kashmir came out and voted for this institution”, seeing no scope of further black mailing these political parties jumped in the third tier of PRI elections and now they were struggling for protocol, status and salary .
Mir who is also Block Development Council chairman (Bufliaz ) in district Poonch, said that if Government wants to fix status, salary and protocol of DDCs, it should first start from the first tier of PRI which is Panchayat halqa then second tier which is Block Development Councils and the last number comes DDC which is nothing else but a third tier of PRI system .
“Before finalising the power of DDCs, Government should define autonomous powers of Block Development Councils and Panchayat halqas so that these institutions can work smoothly,” Mir said.
Expressing anguish Arun Kumar Sharma, provincial president Panchayat Conference Jammu and BDC chairman Sunderbani said that if Government decides to empower only DDCs they will not hesitate to launch an agitation in the entire Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir.
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