Governor rejects MVA proposal to overturn Fadnavis govt’s order

State governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari on Friday rejected the Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government’s proposal to issue an ordinance to scrap direct elections

State governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari on Friday rejected the Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government’s proposal to issue an ordinance to scrap direct elections to the post of the village sarpanch, instead advising the rural development department to bring in a legislation in the upcoming budget session of the state legislature that begins on Monday.

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The previous Devendra Fadnavis government had in 2017 amended the Gram Panchayat Act, 1958 to make way for direct election of sarpanchs. This was done to make inroads in village panchayats, traditionally controlled by the Congress and NCP, even though the elections are rarely contested on party symbols. The MVA government, on January 29, decided to overturn the Fadnavis government’s decision. Rural development minister Hasan Mushrif cited differences between ideologies of sarpanchs and members of gram panchayats as a hurdle in development work. “Following the state cabinet’s decision, the rural development department sent a proposal to the governor, requesting him to sign the ordinance on February 12. Five days later, the governor sent the proposal back, asking us to present it before the legislature for approval. A bill to amend the Gram Panchayat Act will now be placed in the legislature during the budget session,” Mushrif said.

Politically, the BJP had reaped dividends from the direct election and the MVA parties see the overturning of this format as beneficial for them electorally. Raj Bhavan officials refused to comment on the ordinance.

An ordinance can be promulgated by the state to clear an amendment to a certain Act if the state legislature is not in session. However, the ordinance has to be converted into a law by moving a bill before the legislature within a period of six months. If a session is just days away, the constitutional precedent is to move the amendment before the state Assembly instead of issuing an ordinance.

The MVA government doesn’t have a great rapport with the governor. This is the second instance where the governor has not approved a recommendation. After the formation of the government, the NCP declared names candidates for two seats in the legislative Council on December 19, 2019. Both the seats fell vacant after NCP leaders — Rahul Narvekar and Ramrao Wadkute — left the party in the run-up to the Assembly polls. The tenure of the seats will end on June 6, 2020. Koshyari has yet not cleared the appointment of NCP leaders — Shivajirao Garje and Aditi Nalawade – recommended by the CM. Earlier, NCP chief Sharad Pawar and Sena mouthpiece Saamana had expressed unhappiness over alleged delay by the governor in clearing of portfolio allocation.