HUBLI: The State is set to hold elections to zilla and taluk panchayats for the third time even as a question mark remains over the term of presidents and vice-presidents of the panchayats.

When democratic decentralisation was introduced by the Ramakrishna Hegde Government with the late Abdul Nazir Sab as the Minister for Rural Development, a tenure of five years was fixed for gram, taluk and zilla panchayats under the Panchayat Raj Act, 1983. But the Act was implemented from 1987.

The Congress Government introduced its own Panchayat Raj Act in 1993 in the light of the 73rd amendment to the Constitution. The new Act meant a revamp of the earlier arrangement, but it retained the provisions in the 1983 Act on the tenure. The Janata Dal Government (1994-99) implemented the Act even though it lacked the spirit of the previous one. But the Government amended the Act to reduce the tenure to give opportunities to more people. The term of the zilla panchayat president was reduced to 20 months.

Change for the worse?

The change has done more damage to the institution than good, according to the Gram Ganarajya Vedike, a voluntary organisation working for the empowerment of the panchayat institutions. While the five-year system had thrown up several leaders, one of whom became an MP (C. Narayanaswamy) with several of them entering the Legislative Assembly, not one leader has emerged from the new system. In most cases, the president and vice-president complete the term even before they get a hang of their responsibilities.Dharwad district is a typical example of this. For 20 months now, it has not been possible for the President and the Vice-President of the zilla panchayat to function properly.

Not even one meeting of the House was held in nine months. The change in reservation of seats for every election has introduced an element of uncertainty. There is no incentive for the members to work since they are not sure of getting elected again. As far as the tenure of five years is concerned, it has been the unanimous opinion of all committees that a five-year term will allow the rural leadership to grow. And the latest to support this view is the Union Minister for Panchayat Raj, Mani Shankar Aiyar. But successive governments have been sidestepping the issue of restoring the five-year term. H.C. Mahadevappa, Minister for Rural Development and Panchayat Raj, has remained noncommittal on this issue. If it happens, the Government may have to amend the Act before the taluk and zilla panchayat elections or before the election of presidents of the panchayats. One of the factors coming in the way of granting a five-year term to the president is the apprehension in the minds of the legislators that the panchayat presidents will emerge as parallel centres of power.

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