New Delhi: Buoyed by the Supreme Court verdict upholding a law which fixes minimum educational qualification for candidates contesting panchayat polls, the Haryana government today said it is in favour of holding Panchayat elections at the earliest.
Welcoming the top Court decision, Haryana Development and Panchayats Minister Om Prakash Dhankar said the state government wants early polls and Election Commission has been intimated in this regard.
"Haryana would have only educated and crime free Panchayats. Also, the development of the villages would take place at an accelerated pace," Mr Dhankar said reacting to the verdict.
Giving details he said that minimum educational qualification for the candidates contesting elections has been fixed and now, general candidates must have passed class X examinations, whereas women and Dalit candidates are required to have cleared class VIII and class V respectively to contest the Panchayat polls.
As per a statement released in Delhi, Mr Dhankar said the conditions fixed for the candidates of Panchayati Elections would also be observed in Municipal Committees and Municipal Corporations of Local Bodies Department polls.
He said that Haryana would be the first State in the Country to have educated panchayats.
The minister said there are 29 tasks which are accomplished by panchayats and the village sarpanch can do works costing up to Rs 10 lakh.
For this, only educated representatives could take better decisions, he said.
He said that other States would also follow the pattern of Haryana Panchayat Election.
Mr Dhankar said that as per the conditions fixed earlier for the candidates of Panchayat Elections, a sum of Rs 122 crore was received in the first phase of the elections while filling nomination forms.
Now, providing a certificate mentioning payment of electricity bills, disposing off of bank loans and having toilets at homes would be mandatory for contesting the panchayat election, he added as per the official statement.
Earlier the Supreme Court had dismissed a writ petition that challenged validity of Haryana's Panchayati Raj (amendment) Act 2015 which fixes matriculation as essential qualification for general candidates contesting panchayat polls, while the qualification for women (general) and Scheduled Caste candidates has been fixed at Class VIII.
However, in case of a woman candidate belonging to the Scheduled Caste category contesting election for the post of panch (panchayat head), the minimum qualification would be Class V.
Welcoming the top Court decision, Haryana Development and Panchayats Minister Om Prakash Dhankar said the state government wants early polls and Election Commission has been intimated in this regard.
"Haryana would have only educated and crime free Panchayats. Also, the development of the villages would take place at an accelerated pace," Mr Dhankar said reacting to the verdict.
As per a statement released in Delhi, Mr Dhankar said the conditions fixed for the candidates of Panchayati Elections would also be observed in Municipal Committees and Municipal Corporations of Local Bodies Department polls.
Advertisement
The minister said there are 29 tasks which are accomplished by panchayats and the village sarpanch can do works costing up to Rs 10 lakh.
Advertisement
He said that other States would also follow the pattern of Haryana Panchayat Election.
Advertisement
Now, providing a certificate mentioning payment of electricity bills, disposing off of bank loans and having toilets at homes would be mandatory for contesting the panchayat election, he added as per the official statement.
Advertisement
However, in case of a woman candidate belonging to the Scheduled Caste category contesting election for the post of panch (panchayat head), the minimum qualification would be Class V.
COMMENTS
Advertisement
Poll Body Gives Aggrieved Candidates Choice On How They Want To Check EVMs Poll Body Gets Applications For EVM Verification On 8 Lok Sabha Seats Ensure Complete Transparency Of EVMs Or Abolish Them: Rahul Gandhi To Poll Panel Under-Fire Trainee IAS Officer Accuses Pune Collector Of Harassment Meet Indian-Origin Usha Chilukuri Vance, Wife Of Trump's Vice President Pick Trainee IAS Officer Puja Khedkar Recalled To Academy, Training Put On Hold Four In Five Americans Fear Country Is Sliding Into Chaos: Polls Royal Enfield Guerrilla 450 Launched In India; Prices Start At Rs. 2.39 Lakh Admission Deadline Extended For EWS And Special Needs Children Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world.