Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Oct 9: All Jammu and Kashmir Panchayat Conference (AJKPC) has accused the UT administration of willfully creating friction among the members of Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs) and warned that it would have serious repercussions for grassroots level democracy in J&K.
Led by the UT president of AJKPC Anil Sharma, scores of PRI members staged a noisy demonstration against the mass resignation of over 40 Sarpanchs of Ramban district to protest the humiliation met out to them during the recent visit of Union MoS for Rural Development, Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti in the district. The protestors chanted slogans against the administration for sidelining Sarpanchs and Panchs during public outreach programmes of the Union Ministers across the UT.
“Since the elections to Block Development Councils (BDCs) and District Development Councils (DDCs), the Government has deliberately been creating a divide among first-tier representatives (Panchs and Sarpanchs) and second and third-tier representatives (BDCs and DDCs) under a hidden agenda. It will only defeat the basic purpose of Panchayati Raj System, i.e strengthening of grassroots level democracy in J&K,” Anil Sharma said.
The AJKPC leader said the administration has created such an atmosphere where Sarpanchs and Panchs have been feeling neglected and overlooked notwithstanding they are the foundation of grassroots level democracy.
“A sense of hostility is being allowed to prevail between Sarpanchs and BDCs & DDCs under a well-planned design. Only DDCs are now being considered as the representatives of PRIs in J&K and it was witnessed during the Centre’s much-touted public outreach programmes. This mindset will not only make such outreach programmes a big failure but also lead to have serious repercussions for grassroots level democracy,” Sharma said.
Cautioning the authorities against any attempt to create a wedge between PRI members, the AJKPC chief warned that this mindset will not only add to the alienation among Sarpanchs and Panchs, but also destabilize the Panchayati Raj System.
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