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| Polls for 4 LC seats under Panchayat quota | | 'Horse trading' to become key factor in determining outcome………? | |
Early Times Report
Jammu, Nov 9: With issuance of notification for the four seats under Panchayat quota in the Legislative Council, scheduled for December 3, the speculations have started in the political corridors as to what would be the' mode and conduct ' for these crucial seats . Over 33,000 Panches and Sarpanches having no formal political affiliations and the tag of any party, the buzz in the political circles is that parties having stakes have started wooing the members of the Panchayats. Will 'Horse trading' be the guiding and key factor in determining the outcome of the results of these polls……?
It is widely known that Panchayat polls were held last year on the non party basis by the NC led coalition government though upon completion of poll process and declaration of results in a phased manner , parties both from ruling alliance as well as in opposition claimed success with thousands of elected members on their side. In other words the lines of parties were drawn for a sizable number of panches and sarpanches in terms of their affiliations and their allegiance to the leadership of either Congress, National Conference and even PDP and other smaller parties in opposition. The Panches and Sarpanches have for the last over one year been working and functioning in whatever capacity in their units on the basis of their association with respective parties.
However, with passage of time as the autonomous functioning and empowerment of Panhayats became elusive coupled with the claims of the government turning out to be hollow, disillusionment and disappointment has replaced their initial enthusiasm for the parties , particularly those in ruling alliance. In absence of any defined and clear powers for their functioning in various works, negative role of almost all MLAs from all parties in terms of stalling smooth functioning has also affected the morale and fervor of Panchayat members, though there is still a vast majority which continue to be committed cadres of various parties.
However, as the standoff between the Congress and National Conference continued over adoption of 73rdamendment which resulted in postponement of BDC polls and no commitment on 74th amendment which has also put a mark of uncertainty over holding of elections for Municipal Corporations as also the Urban Local Bodies, the members of Panchayats having affiliation with Congress and NC in particular are in a state of dilemma . In the wake of threat perception in various parts of Kashmir, hundreds of members also resigned . The commitment and conviction of the elected members is also wavering following controversies related to their affiliations with various parties.
It is in the backdrop of these realities , fair and transparent polls for four LC seats is being viewed as a far fetched scene as murmurs have already begun that parties having bigger and stronger claims have started wooing the members much ahead of the polls scheduled early next month. Observers have it to say that it is very easy and convenient for the parties to indulge in 'horse trading' as there are no party tags nor is there a defined whip which acts as deterrent for such acts. However, that also proved to be no hurdle for the legislators when they indulged in cross voting, apparently following cross voting in the polls for Legislative Council seats that had fallen vacant in April 2011. |
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