As if the flip-flop by the ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government in Punjab by first dissolving all panchayats across the State, and days later reverting its ‘technically flawed’ decision was not enough to its embarrassment, its attempts to shift the blame on the bureaucracy appears to have reflected poorly on the government’s style of working.
On August 10, the Punjab government issued a notification dissolving all gram panchayats, panchayat samitis, and zila parishads in the State. The order also stated that the general election of the members of panchayat samitis and the zila parishads, shall be held by November 25, 2023, and of the gram panchayats, shall be held by December 31, 2023.
Soon after the notification, the government faced stiff resistance to its decision from the Opposition, including the Congress, the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), as they termed the decision ‘unconstitutional’. The government did not budge and kept defending its decision even as the decision was challenged in the Punjab and Haryana High Court. The government asserted that the dissolving order on panchayats was in accordance with constitutional provisions as the government had the constitutional duty and power to hold the elections of Panchayati Raj Institutions under Section 209 of the Punjab Panchayati Raj Act, 1994.
