The Allahabad High Court’s Lucknow bench has raised concerns regarding the operations of the Panchayati Raj department. This scrutiny is specifically linked to the inclusion of Dihwa Khurd village within the Chahlar gram panchayat in Bahraich district. The court’s inquiry highlights potential irregularities in the administrative processes governing local governance structures.
The court has directed the special secretary of the Panchayati Raj department to appear personally on Oct 5 and explain the position.
The court said the matter ought to have been examined by the state govt. The order was passed on a petition filed by Mahendra Pratap Singh.
A bench of Justice Rajan Roy and Justice Manjive Shukla also directed the additional chief secretary/principal secretary, Panchayati Raj, to guide the special secretary in placing the state’s stand before the court and to examine his affidavit. In an earlier order, the court had observed that the order passed by the director, Panchayati Raj, rejecting the petitioner’s representation prima facie appeared to be without factual or legal basis.
Court Clarifies Jurisdiction Over Villages
During a recent hearing, Chandrabhan Singh, the district panchayat raj officer of Bahraich, confirmed that the villages of Manikapur and Rasoolabad are situated between Dihwa Khurd and Chahlar. Importantly, he stated that these two villages do not fall under the jurisdiction of the Chahlar gram panchayat.
The court emphasized that one provision of the government order cannot be applied while disregarding another. It asserted that both provisions must be considered in tandem to ensure proper legal interpretation.