Patna, Bihar
Tension is rising in rural Bihar as over 8,000 mukhiyas (village heads) across the state are preparing to march to the state capital Patna, next month on October 2 on Gandhi Jayanti, to hold a mahapanchayat.
The mukhiyas are miffed with the government as they claim their powers as village heads have been snatched away and taken over by the state government, which, they complain, is against the nature of decentralisation as envisaged in the country’s panchayati raj system.
Mahatma Gandhi espoused the cause of decentralisation of power and village republics, hence Gandhi Jayanti has been chosen as the day for the mahapanchayat of mukhiyas.
The Bihar Mukhiya Sangh, made up of 8,442 village heads from across the districts, has put forth 19 demands to the central and state governments. The mukhiyas feared the state and central governments were eroding their authority.
The protesting mukhiyas are also unhappy about the remuneration they get.
“On one hand the government says that it is all for strengthening the panchayat raj system, but on the other it is systematically stripping the mukhiyas of their powers. If the demands of the mukhiyas are not met, we will march to Patna and hold a mahapanchayat there on October 2, on Mahatma Gandhi’s birthday,” Mithilesh Kumar Rai, the head of Bihar Mukhiya Sangh, told Gaon Connection.
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Among the several demands of mukhiyas, some include:
- Increase in the salaries of panchayat representatives by the government.
- Immediate allocation of funds recommended by the 15th Finance Commission by the central government.
- Restoration of the right to payment in the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) to the panchayats.
- Transfer of the operation of the Jal Jeevan Mission from the Public Health Engineering Department (PHED) to the panchayats.
- Granting full implementation of 29 rights to Gram Panchayats under the 73rd Constitutional Amendment.
Afsar Imam, district head of the Mukhiya Sangh in Pashchim Champaran, gave an example of how the sphere of authority of mukhiyas was shrinking.
“Earlier, MGNREGA payments to the labourers would be made by the village representatives. The Jal Nal Yojana work was also handled by the village authorities, but now the government has handed that responsibility to the PHED],” Imam told Gaon Connection. All MGNREGA works are now handled at block level and payments directly transferred to the beneficiaries accounts.
“In short, there seems to be a conspiracy afoot to strip the panchayats of their authority,” Imam added.
Last month, more than 8,000 mukhiyas in Bihar went on a hartal (strike) on August 16, a day after the Independence Day flag hoisting ceremonies. They continued their protest till August 31.
“Our protest was to draw the attention of the state and central governments towards systematically stripping the mukhiyas of their powers,” Chandni Kumari, mukhiya of Lakshminiya panchayat in Supaul district, told Gaon Connection. Since nothing had been done in response to their August protest, the conflict will remain till their voices are heard, she added.
The protesting mukhiyas are also unhappy about the remuneration they get. “Village representatives are paid a pittance by the government. Our salaries must be hiked and government departments should stop interfering in our area of work,” Prashanth Kumar Mandal, mukhiya of Tardih panchayat in Banka district, told Gaon Connection.
Mukhiya and sarpanch are paid Rs 2,500 per month each, whereas ward member and panch are monthly paid Rs 500 each.
“Earlier government documents such as birth and death certificates were issued at the Panchayat Sarkar Bhawan, but now the RTPS [Right To Public Service] counter has been shifted from there to the block headquarters. This has made it inconvenient for the village inhabitants, Prashanth Kumar pointed out.
“Most of the services have been outsourced to private vendors,” the mukhiya of Tardih panchayat complained.
The protesting mukhiyas are also demanding they should be allowed to carry licensed firearms to protect themselves. According to a spokesperson of the Bihar Mukhiya Sangh, more than 10 mukhiyas had lost their lives in post-poll violence in September 2021, and a compensation of Rs 50 lakh should be paid to families of those killed.
More recently, in May 2023, Amravati Devi, the mukhiya of Paschmi Gundi panchayat in Aara district, lost her husband Mahendra Yadav who was shot down and killed by assailants.
“In Bihar, there is a trend of killing any mukhiya, or village workers who do something good for the panchayat. We have left it to God to protect us,” Santosh Murmu, the mukhiya of Pirpainti panchayat in Bhagalpur district, told Gaon Connection. Murmu said that there was no compensation to the family members of those killed.
“Many of the mukhiyas have applied for a licence to carry firearms for their protection, but so far none of them has been issued with one,” he added.
The protesting mukhiyas are also demanding they should be allowed to carry licensed firearms to protect themselves.
However, a few government workers who work in the panchayat, and who did not wish to be named, said that some mukhiyas were not above corruption themselves. Also, because the mukhiyas were usually moneyed people and wielded considerable authority and influence, they became targets of political rivals and assailants, they said.
Meanwhile, mukhiyas are adamant about the mahapanchayat on Gandhi Jayanti. “Whether it is the central government or the state government, we will raise our voices against both and organise a mahapanchayat at the Gandhi Maidan in Patna on 2 October,” said the Bihar Mukhiya Sangh chief, Mithilesh Kumar.
“If need be we will also protest in front of Raj Bhavan and the Vidhan Sabha. All the panchayat representatives are with us. We are fighting as one,” said Afsar Imam, the mukhiya from West Champaran.
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Meanwhile, on 12 September, in a press conference in Patna, Mihir Singh, the secretary general of Bihar’s panchayati raj department, said, “The panchayat is an autonomous and independent entity and the mukhiyas have every right to protest. They are continuing to discharge their duties even as they protest and make their demands in a democratic way.”
He also informed that in the first phase, 180 mukhiyas from the state will be trained in Maharashtra to increase the speed and quality of development in the panchayats.
19 Demands of Bihar Mukhiya Sangh
- Increase in the salaries of panchayat representatives by the government.
- Immediate allocation of funds recommended by the 15th Finance Commission by the central government.
- Compensation of Rs 50 lakh to the families of panchayat representatives who died in criminal incidents.
- Restoration of the right to payment in the MGNREGA to the panchayats.
- Issuance of weapons licences to village chiefs for security purposes.
- Transfer of the operation of the Jal Jeevan Mission from the PHED to the panchayats.
- Granting full implementation of 29 rights to Gram Panchayats under the 73rd Constitutional Amendment.
- Ensuring compliance with decisions passed for the protection of Gram Sabha.
- Implementation of the Kabir Antyesthi Yojana for the destitute in the panchayats.
- Provision of momentum to all types of social security pension schemes.
- Granting the gram panchayat the right to issue birth and death certificates.
- Providing administrative powers up to Rs 20 lakhs to the gram panchayat in MGNREGA.
- Discontinuation of the use of the NMMS app in MGNREGA.
- Increasing the wage rate in MGNREGA.
- Immediate availability of funds from the 15th Finance Commission and 6th Finance Commission to the panchayat.
- Immediate initiation of the Prime Minister/Chief Minister Housing Scheme.
- Allocation of a share of revenue collection to the gram panchayat from all sources.
- Giving priority to plans selected by the gram sabha. Ending unnecessary interference by the government in the gram sabha.
- The Chief Minister Solar Street Light Scheme to be handed over to the gram panchayat.
