People's Democracy

Left Front Launches Movement

For Timely Panchayat Elections

THE state government, deliberately abdicating its constitutional duty has made the Panchayat Elections uncertain, said Left Front. To press for the demand for timely holding of the Panchayat Elections, the Left Front has announced an agitational course of action. A sit-in demonstration was held on April 2 in Kolkata. After this, from the village level in all the districts to the district headquarter towns, demonstration and movement would continue demanding the holding of Panchayat Elections.

On April 1, a Left Front delegation headed by Left Front chairman Biman Basu met the governor M K Narayanan at Raj Bhawan and handed him a memorandum stating that unless Panchayat Elections are held on time in the state, the participation of the people in exercising their democratic rights and the rural development of Bengal will be hampered. They urged the governor to take initiative to ensure timely Panchayat Elections.

In the sit-in, Biman Basu said that the motive of the government in not holding of the Panchayat Elections in due time was evident for some time now. It is an alarming conspiracy.  The state government had planned before hand about not holding the Panchayat Elections in due time. It is intervening in the constitutional duty of the election commission because of which the elections are getting delayed and a legal dispute has emerged regarding the elections.

Biman Basu alleged that if Panchayat Elections are not held in due process, the state will be affected in terms of development. There are many central government rural development programmes, the grant for which the state government will not get unless there is a Panchayat. Many rural development programmes like the NREGA will be affected.

In the sit-in, Ashoke Ghose of Forward Block said that Left Front government has initiated democratic decentralisation through Panchayats. It established the right of people in the villages. The TMC government is trying to snatch these rights.

Suryakanta Misra said that for the first time since 1978, the elections to Panchayats are in jeopardy. During Left Front government, elections were held seven times and in regular schedule.