Now, Cong-backed sarpanches revolt against govt

Ban entry of MLAs, ministers in villages for next 10 days

Corruption, stalled work will cost dear

The government has failed to address the concerns of sarpanches who are suffering at the hands of corrupt officials. Stalled development works in villages will cost the government dear in 2022.

Ravinder Singh Rinku (Gurney), vice-president, Sarpanch Panchayat Union of Punjab

Aman Sood

Tribune News Service

Patiala, August 23

Not only it own MLAs, but even the grassroots-level torchbearers of the Congress — sarpanches and panches — have also raised a banner of revolt against the party, claiming they are being “ignored”.

Hundreds of sarpanches alleged their own MLAs had forgotten about the plight of villages and warned the government of facing the people’s wrath if they came to seek votes for the forthcoming Assembly elections.

“The government has failed to address the concerns of sarpanches who are suffering at the hands of bureaucracy and corrupt officials. This will cost the government dear in 2022,” said Ravinder Singh Rinku (Gurney), vice-president, Sarpanch Panchayat Union of Punjab.

“Pending MGNREGA payments and stalled development works in villages will only add to the problems being faced by the rural Punjab,” he added.

These sarpanches claimed that a majority of them were Congress supporters, but they had been meted out a stepmotherly treatment by the government. “For next 10 days, no MLA or minister will be allowed to enter or hold any kind of event in any village. While development works have come to a standstill, corrupt officers are making hay. All our pleas to look into our demands to ensure speeding up of developmental works have fallen on deaf ears,” claimed union president Gurmeet Singh.

Around 8,000 union members are camping in Patiala against the state government, a majority of them Congress-backed. “Not only has the Congress government delayed the MGNREGA payment, their MLAS are creating hurdles in expediting the pending works in villages,” said Gurmeet Singh.

Union members warned that the Congress will pay a price for completely ignoring their foot-soldiers in rural areas. “We are public representatives like MLAs and it is now becoming hard for us to face the public when they ask us questions pertaining to pending works,” said Rinku.

“While the state government wants to reemploy retired patwaris at Rs 25,000, it pays merely Rs 1,200 per month to a sarpanch. Even this meagre amount has not been paid for months,” claimed union members.