Gram Sabha
ð Foundation of the panchayati raj system.
ð It is a body consisting of persons registered in the electoral rolls of a village comprised within the area of Panchayat at the village level.
ð It may exercise such powers and perform such functions at the village level as the legislature of a state determines.
Three-Tier System
ð The act provides for a three-tier system of panchayati raj in every state, that is, panchayats at the village, intermediate, and district levels.
(The Act defines all these terms in the following manner:
(a) Panchayat means an institution (by whatever name called) of self-government for rural areas.
(b) Village means a village specified by the governor by public notification to be a village for this purpose, and includes a group of villages so specified.
(c) Intermediate level means a level between the village and district levels specified by the governor by public notification for this purpose.
(d) District means a district in a state.)
Thus, the act brings about uniformity in the structure of panchayati raj throughout the country. However, a state having a population not exceeding 20 lakhs may not constitute panchayats at the intermediate level.
Election of Members and Chairpersons
ð All the members of panchayats at the village, intermediate and district levels shall be elected directly by the people.
ð The chairperson of panchayats at the intermediate and district levels shall be elected indirectly—by and from amongst the elected members thereof. However, the chairperson of a panchayat at the village level shall be elected in such manner as the state legislature determines.
ð The act provides for the reservation of seats for scheduled castes and scheduled tribes in every panchayat (i.e., at all the three levels) in proportion of their population to the total population in the panchayat area. Further, the state legislature shall provide for the reservation of offices of chairperson in the panchayat at the village or any other level for the SCs and STs.
ð The act provides for the reservation of not less than one-third of the total number of seats for women (including the number of seats reserved for women belonging the SCs and STs). Further, not less than one-third of the total number of offices of chairpersons in the panchayats at each level shall be reserved for women.
ð The act also authorizes the legislature of a state to make any provision for reservation of seats in any panchayat or offices of chairperson in the panchayat at any level in favor of backward classes.
Duration of Panchayats
ð The act provides for a five-year term of office to the panchayat at every level. However, it can be dissolved before the completion of its term.
ð fresh elections to constitute a panchayat shall be completed (a) before the expiry of its duration of five years; or (b) in case of dissolution, before the expiry of a period of six months from the date of its dissolution.
Disqualifications
ð A person shall be disqualified for being chosen as or for being a member of panchayat if he is so disqualified, (a) under any law for the time being in force for the purpose of elections to the legislature of the state concerned, or (b) under any law made by the state legislature.
ð However, no person shall be disqualified on the ground that he is less than 25 years of age if he has attained the age of 21 years.
ð all questions of disqualifications shall be referred to such authority as the state legislature determines.
State Election Commission
ð The superintendence, direction and control of the preparation of electoral rolls and the conduct of all elections to the panchayats shall be vested in the state election commission.
ð It consists of a state election commissioner to be appointed by the governor. His conditions of service and tenure of office shall also be determined by the governor. He shall not be removed from the office except in the manner and on the grounds prescribed for the removal of a judge of the state high court. (A judge of a high court can be removed from his office by the president on the recommendation of the Parliament. This means that a state election commissioner cannot be removed by the governor, though appointed by him.) His conditions of service shall not be varied to his disadvantage after his appointment.
The state legislature may make provision with respect to all matters relating to elections to the panchayats.
Powers and Functions
The state legislature may endow the Panchayats with such powers and authority as may be necessary to enable them to function as institutions of self-government. Such a scheme may contain provisions for the devolution of powers and responsibilities upon Panchayats at the appropriate level with respect to (a) the preparation of plans for economic development and social justice; (b) the implementation of schemes for economic development and social justice as may be entrusted to them, including those in relation to the 29 matters listed in the Eleventh Schedule.
Finances
The state legislature may (a) authorize a panchayat to levy, collect and appropriate taxes, duties, tolls and fees; (b) assign to a panchayat taxes, duties, tolls and fees levied and collected by the state government; (c) provide for making grants-in-aid to the panchayats from the consolidated fund of the state; and (d) provide for constitution of funds for crediting all moneys of the panchayats.
Finance Commission
The governor of a state shall, after every five years, constitute a finance commission to review the financial position of the panchayats. It shall make the following recommendations to the Governor:
1. The principles that should govern:
(a) The distribution between the state and the panchayats of the net proceeds of the taxes,
duties, tolls and fees levied by the state.
(b) The determination of taxes, duties, tolls and fees that may be assigned to the panchayats.
(c) The grants-in-aid to the panchayats from the consolidated fund of the state.
2. The measures needed to improve the financial position of the panchayats.
3. Any other matter referred to it by the governor in the interests of sound finance of the
panchayats.
The state legislature may provide for the composition of the commission, the required qualifications
of its members and the manner of their selection.
The governor shall place the recommendations of the commission along with the action taken report
before the state legislature.
The Central Finance Commission shall also suggest the measures needed to augment the consolidated
fund of a state to supplement the resources of the panchayats in the states (on the basis of the
recommendations made by the finance commission of the state).
Audit of Accounts
The state legislature may make provisions with respect to the maintenance of
accounts by the panchayats and the auditing of such accounts.
Application to Union Territories
The president of India may direct that the provisions of this act shall apply to any union territory subject to such exceptions and modifications as he may specify.
Exempted States and Areas
The act does not apply to the states of Jammu and Kashmir, Nagaland, Meghalaya and Mizoram and certain other areas. These areas include, (a) the scheduled areas and the tribal areas in the states5; (b) the hill area of Manipur for which a district council exists; and (c) Darjeeling district of West Bengal for which Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council exists.
However, the Parliament may extend the provisions of this Part to the scheduled areas subject to such
exceptions and modifications as it may specify. Under this provision, the Parliament has enacted the
‘Provisions of the Panchayats (Extension to the Scheduled Areas) Act’, 1996 (PESA).
Continuance of Existing Laws and Panchayats
All the state laws relating to panchayats shall continue to be in force until the expiry of one year from the commencement of this act. In other words, the states have to adopt the new panchayati raj system based on this act within the maximum period of one year from 24 April, 1993, which was the date of the commencement of this act. However, all the panchayats existing immediately before the commencement of act shall continue till the expiry of their term, unless dissolved by the state legislature sooner.
· Consequently, majority of states passed the panchayati raj acts in 1993 and 1994 to adopt the new system in accordance with the 73rd Constitutional Amendment Act of 1992.
Bar to Interference by Courts in Electoral Matters
The act bars the interference by courts in the electoral matters of panchayats. It declares that the validity of any law relating to the delimitation of constituencies or the allotment of seats to such constituencies cannot be questioned in any court. It further lays down that no election to any panchayat is to be questioned except by an election petition presented to such authority and in such manner as provided by the state legislature.
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