Once bitten twice shy: Punjab government seeks info on panchayats’ term before dissolving them

The government had to withdraw the orders of premature dissolution after a PIL was filed in the Punjab and Haryana High Court. The fresh orders issued on Monday specifically mentioned that only those panchayats will be dissolved where the first gram panchayat meeting was held five years ago, meaning the panchayat would have completed its full term.

The orders said, “The government is considering dissolving the panchayats and appointing administrative officers. Hence, the department should be told about such panchayats.”

Sources said a number of panchayats would complete their terms in the coming days and the government, after having learnt from the earlier fiasco, was not taking any chances. “Hence, we are checking beforehand,” a source said.

On August 31, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann had ordered the suspension of two officers – principal secretary (rural development and panchayats) D K Tiwari and director Gurpreet Singh Khaira – after the government faced embarrassment. The two were reinstated later but have been without a posting since.

The two officers had issued orders for the dissolution of gram panchayats, under provisions of Rule 3 (1) of the All India Services (Disciplined Appeal) Rules, 1969, before the decision was challenged in the high court.

Mann was reportedly upset with the department for not only taking a “wrong” decision but for leakage of the file pertaining to the orders which had his signatures. This had allowed the Opposition to attack the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government over the issue.

The chief minister had expressed his displeasure in this regard to the officials. “He was of the view that the file was leaked with a motive to embarrass him,” a source had said at the time. Tiwari was abroad when the suspension orders were issued.

Gurjeet Singh Talwandi, general secretary, Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), and others had through a PIL challenged the notification as per which all gram panchayats in the state were dissolved before the completion of term. Among other things, Talwandi had contended that the gram panchayats were illegally dissolved by exercising powers under section 29A of the Punjab Panchayati Raj Act, 1994.

The SAD leader had also sought directions for quashing the letter/communication dated August 11 issued by the Controller, Panchayati Raj (Finance), Rural Development and Panchayat department, whereby all financial transactions with the gram panchayat had been suspended.