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Showing contexts for: devolution of powers in Bihar Pradesh Mukhiya Mahasangh vs The State Of Bihar & Ors on 21 November, 2017Matching Fragments
Article 40 of the Constitution of India reads as follows:-
"40. Organisation of village Panchayats.- The State shall take steps to organise village panchayats and endow them with such powers and authority as may be necessary to enable them to function as units of self-government."
4. Referring to Article 40 of the Constitution of India, Mr. Kanth submitted that the Constitution heralded a new era of governance and under the provisions of the Directive Principles of the State policy, the framers of the Constitution ordained the State to take steps to organise village panchayat and after four decades of adoption of the Constitution the grass-root democracy in the nature of Panchayati Raj became reality by way of Seventy-third Amendment and Part-IX was inserted in the Constitution. It provides for the Panchayati Raj Institution at grass-root level. Mr. Kanth referring to the Constitutional scheme with Part-IX submitted that the constitutional scheme contained in Article 243 is very candid on the point of constitution of Panchayati Raj Institution at village level, intermediate level and at district level. He submitted that the Constitution in most unambiguous term has defined the Gram Sabha, Panchayat and prescribed modality of composition of the Patna High Court CWJC No.8698 of 2017 dt.21-11-2017 Gram Sabha and Panchayat. He referred to the various provisions of the Constitution to substantiate that the Constitution has already provided a detailed mechanism of constitution of Panchayati Raj Institution and its working, power and function. He referred to the scheme contained in Article 243G to contend that the Legislature of the State was only authorized to endow the panchayat with such power and authority as may be necessary to enable them to function as institution of self-government. He submitted that power of the legislature to enact law is subject to the provisions of the Constitution which limits the power of legislature. He submitted that the law is required to be made in furtherance of Eleventh Schedule for devolution of power and responsibility of Gram Panchayat at appropriate level that means at panchayat level, at intermediate level and at district level.
18. Mr. Lalit Kishore, learned Advocate General thus submitted that in view of the finding of the Division Bench that such creation of Samiti is only permissible by way of amendment in the Act and under the constitutional scheme the State has the legislative competence and as such it has exercised that power and amended the Act. He submitted that the object behind the amendment is to focus over all development of the entire panchayat instead of development in a partisan manner. The object behind constitution of Ward Sabha is to focus and address the problem at the Ward level Patna High Court CWJC No.8698 of 2017 dt.21-11-2017 and the amendment is in furtherance of decentralization of the power and cannot be construed as abrogating the constitutional scheme under Part-IX of the Constitution. Mr. Lalit Kishore referring to the constitutional scheme under Article 243G submitted that the Constitution authorizes the legislature to enact law in order to endow the Panchayat with such power and authority as may be necessary to enable them to function as institution of self-government. It is indicative of the idea of decentralization so that the constitutional scheme as well as the development programme and benefits reaches the remotest one. Mr. Lalit Kishore submitted that Article 243G authorizes the State Legislature to frame such law for devolution of power and responsibility upon the Panchayat at appropriate level which does not mean that the legislature cannot provide for devolution of power and responsibility at Ward Sabha within the parameters of appropriate levels. He next contended that Article 243G further enables the State Legislature to make law with respect to preparation of plan for economic development and social justice and implementation of scheme for economic development and social change in relation to matters in Eleventh Schedule and thus he submitted that the entire scheme by way of amendment was introduced with a view to promote the objectives of implementation Patna High Court CWJC No.8698 of 2017 dt.21-11-2017 of scheme for economic development and social justice and change.
Statement of Objects and Reasons appended to the Patna High Court CWJC No.8698 of 2017 dt.21-11-2017 Constitution (Seventy-second Amendment) Bill, 1991 which was enacted as the Constitution (Seventy-third Amendment) Act, 1992 Though the Panchayati Raj Institutions have been in existence for a long time, it has been observed that these institutions have not been able to acquire the status and dignity of viable and responsive people's bodies due to a number of reasons including absence of regular elections, prolonged suppressions, insufficient representation of weaker sections like Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and women, inadequate devolution of powers and lack of financial resources.