For the first time in the state, the Ombudsman for the Local Self-Government has sought a clarification from the secretary of the Vayalar grama panchayat in Alappuzha district for not convening the gram sabha as per the provisions of the Panchayati Raj Act and the Municipality Act.
Justice M N Krishnan, the Ombudsman for the Local Self-Government will hold a sitting on Monday in connection with the issue. The RTI activists lauded the decision as many grama panchayats in the state are currently facing the threat of disqualification for not convening the meetings as per the norms. Besides, in a majority of the cases, the panchayat secretaries failed to notify the dereliction of duty to the authorities concerned. “If grama sabhas are not convened within the stipulated time, it is the responsibility of the panchayat secretary to bring the issue to the fore. But they failed miserably in this regard. As per the information received through the Right To Information (RTI) Act, not a single panchayat secretary has notified the higher ups about the failure to convene the grama sabhas. Any action being taken against the panchayat secretaries as per the Panchayati Raj and Municipality Act will boost the confidence of the public in the system,” said D B Binu, Kerala Human Rights Defence Forum state general secretary. He said that, the panchayat secretary of the Vayalar panchayat had furnished the information as the public information officer (PIO) of the panchayat. “This shows that though the panchayat secretary is aware of his duty, he has failed to perform the same. We have filed a petition regarding his non-compliance. It is on this complaint that the Ombudsman for the LSG has sought a clarification,” he said. As per the Act, though the decision to disqualify the elected members for not convening the grama sabhas, the Ombudsman can initiate action against the panchayat secretaries for failing to perform their duties.
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