Penalties for the refusal to undertake or for the wilful omission to perform, the duties of a member of the panchayat are prescribed in Section 8 of the Act. They should be enforced with discretion. The position of a member of the panchayat should be conferred as a dignity, not inflicted under penalties as a punishment. Under Section 10 of the Act, any member of a panchayat may be removed or discharged by the District Magistrate or the Sub-Divisional Officer, as the case may be, by a written Order.
