Fulfilling its commitment of full implementation of Panchayati Raj, the State Chief Electoral Officer has announced the schedule for election to 143 seats of Chairpersons of Block Development Councils in pursuance of the stipulation of Panchayati Raj Act. Election will be held on November 7, and counting of the votes shall start immediately after the elections and results will be declared by the evening. The elections will be held on non-party basis, like the Panchayat elections. This would be the second tier of the Panchayati Raj institution and a step onwards on the path to devolution of power to the people. The arrangement is that districts have been divided into Development Blocks on the basis of their convenient and uniform development. The blocks already identified have been formally notified and each Block will return one Chairperson of the Block Development Council who will also become a member of the District Development Board. This means that each Block will have its representative in the District Development Board, and this ensures that the interests of Blocks will be taken care of through their elected representatives…
33,500 elected Panchs, who include 4098 Sarpanchs, will elect 143 persons in all the three regions of the State to become Chairpersons of Block Development Councils. It is noteworthy that election to BDC is being held for the first time in the State, and its credit goes to Omar Abdullah Government that has been pursuing the matter relentlessly as part of its devolution of power policy. Any person of the particular Block, eligible for contesting the election of Panch, can contest the election of BDC chairperson. The Electoral College for the BDCs comprises 33,500 Sarpanchs and Panchs. Out of a total of 4098 Sarpanchs, 2145 are in Kashmir division and 1953 in Jammu division while out of 29,402 Panchs, 15,767 were in Kashmir division and 13,635 in Jammu division.
Modalities of election to BDCs are almost the same as in assembly election. The elections will be conducted through ballot boxes and ballot papers and not through the Electronic Voting Machines, which is a controversial issue and pending decision before the Supreme Court. The ballot papers would be used as this was part of the State Panchayati Raj Act. To conduct the elections, the CEO has appointed 143 Returning Officers, 145 Assistant Returning Officers, 145 Presiding and 290 Polling Officers. The CEO has notified criteria for the persons eligible to contest the elections of BDC chairpersons. Whereas almost all conditions of eligibility are the repeat of conditions for assembly elections, there is no mention of minimum educational qualification for a contestant to the post of chairperson.
This again is a stupendous exercise like the election of the Panchs but a necessary stipulation to be fulfilled. One needs to understand coolly the intentions of the ruling coalition to strengthen democratic dispensation in the State. It has been the considered opinion of our law makers that the democratic arrangement in place needed something more to be added to its content so that involvement of people in letter and in spirit becomes manifest. The lurking impression has been that after assembly elections, a sort of distancing develops between the rulers and the ruled which needed to be dispelled. It could be done by providing space to the masses of people in sharing decision making power. Panchayati Raj is an old and traditional socio-political practice of ancient India. It had its roots in the village Panchayat, which functioned both as moral and legal authority in the villages of India. This idea has been developed and made broad-based so as to remain the basis of a full-fledged modern democratic system for the country. With power comes the sense of responsibility. The NC-led Government has done historic service to the State by empowering the people who will have to make independent decisions of how to grow and develop and usher in material and spiritual prosperity. The third and the last tier of Panchayati Raj Act is the election to the Urban-Rural Bodies, which will come after the BDC elections are over. With that the Panchayati Raj Act will make the full circle.
We are aware that the enemies of peace and progress in the State, whether within or outside the State, will try to put hurdles in the way of these elections. They will intimidate prospective candidates and issue warnings to them. They can unleash violence at full measure because each popular election weakens them politically, morally and logistically. The Government is committed to carrying the process forward and bringing it to logical conclusion. Nothing will deter it from bringing full doze of democracy to the people who are enthusiastic recipients of such revolutionary measures. Militant should know that the entire people of the State of Jammu and Kashmir are galvanized into activity that will immensely strengthen the democratic dispensation they have chosen for themselves. There is no looking back onward from now.
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