Countering Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s allegation on April 24 that the Congress governments meted out a “step-motherly” treatment to villages, the Congress reminded him and the nation that it was a Congress government that gave constitutional status to panchayats by way of the 73 rd Constitutional Amendment.
Speaking on the occasion of National Panchayati Raj Day in Madhya Pradesh, Mr. Modi said: “The party which ruled the most after Independence broke the trust of villages...meted out step-motherly treatment to them.”
Also read: PM Modi launches various development projects on National Panchayati Raj Day in M.P.
At a press conference at the Congress headquarters in New Delhi, party’s general secretary (communications) Jairam Ramesh said Rajiv Gandhi’s biggest contribution in Indian political history was to take the first step towards Constitutional status for panchayats.
“The Bill giving Constitutional status to panchayats and Nagar Palikas could not be passed in September 1989, when Rajiv Gandhi was the Prime Minister, as the Congress did not have majority in the Rajya Sabha, where the Bill was short of five votes. The BJP also voted against the Bill. The 73rd Constitutional Amendment Bill became an Act on 24th April, 1993, during a Congress government’s rule,” Mr. Ramesh said. It was a revolutionary step, he said, since it added a third tier of decision-making in the country.
“Women were given one-third reservation in the 73rd Constitutional Amendment Act. Today there are almost 32 lakh elected representatives in the three-tier Panchayati Raj system, of whom about 15 lakh are women,” he added.
Mr. Ramesh also pointed out that it was the Congress-led UPA government in 2010 that marked April 24 as Panchayati Raj Diwas. “But our Prime Minister is trying to take credit for this today,” he said.
He instead accused the government of trying to dilute the powers of panchayats by trying to kill the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MNREGA) that strengthened the Panchayati Raj system.
“Money for the MGNREGA goes in the account of gram panchayats but the Modi government wants to weaken MGNREGA. Today, 2.5 lakh gram panchayats don’t get enough money,” he stated. He also cited several instances of BJP-ruled States delaying panchayat elections.
