The Maharashtra Assembly on Monday passed the amended Maharashtra Municipal Council, Nagar Panchayats, and Industrial Townships Act, 1965.
Chief Minister Eknath Shinde tabled the Bill to amend the Act, and said that heads of Nagar Parishads and Panchayats can be elected directly by voters. The amendment was introduced to change the existing practice of elected representatives choosing the heads of Nagar Parishads or municipal councils.
Mr. Shinde said the amendments mentioned all the duties and responsibilities of these heads. He added that the amendments were carried out because people wanted to elect their own heads of Nagar Parishads and Panchayats, and “we are just listening to them”.
Leader of the Opposition in the State Assembly, Ajit Pawar, objected to the amendments. “This is against the spirit of democracy. This government has not only played with democratic norms, it has also given excess powers to the elected heads. This will cause frustration among elected members, as most of the powers are delegated to the head. This is not what the Indian Constitution had envisaged. The amendment would restrict candidates from the Scheduled Caste (SC) and Scheduled Tribe (ST) communities to become the city head. Earlier, the posts of civic heads used to be reserved for women, SC, ST, Other Backward Classes, or open [category]. There is no such provision in the amendment,” he said.
