BJP hits out at BJD for squeezing gram panchayats' autonomy

BHUBANESWAR: The BJP on Wednesday slammed the State Government for allegedly squeezing the power of gram panchayats.

Launching an attack on Naveen Patnaik Government on the eve of Panchayati Raj Divas, State BJP president Samir Mohanty said instead of delegating power to panchayat bodies, the ruling-BJD is centralising all power for political interests.

Accusing the Government of crippling the three-tier panchayatiraj institutions (PRIs), Mohanty said excessive centralisation of power and decision-making process is against the spirit of the constitution.

He said the Government is usurping the power of the panchayats for vote bank politics. Funds allocated to the panchayats for developmental works are being utilised through departments without approval of gram sabhas.

Claiming that panchayats are getting direct central assistance of Rs 40 lakh to Rs 1 crore, the BJP leader said projects worth Rs 5 lakh or more are now being executed by line departments through BJD affiliated contractors without approval of ‘palli sabhas’.

Taking strong objection to the February 19, 2020 order of the Pancjayati Raj department to block development officers directing to divert Rs 10 lakh from each panchayat to the Rural Water Supply wing for implementation of drinking water projects, Mohanty said 94 per cent of the funds allocated to panchayats as per recommendations of the Finance Commission are central grants.

“It is the responsibility of the panchayats to decide the projects to be implemented after approval of palli sabhas (village committees). Now, the Government has made the village committees defunct,” he said. Responding to the allegations, Odisha Labour Minister Sushanta Singh said, “It has become the habit of the BJP to blame the government without any reason. People never believed the false allegations brought by the BJP leaders in the last 20 years,” Singh said.