The much-hyped Panchayat Mahakumbh saw frayed tempers of the participants soon after it was inaugurated late by the State Panchayati Raj Minister Arvind Pandey on Thursday.
While many of them left after waiting long for the Minister, others followed suit in the midst of the programme after the Minister scolded them for asking for drinking water. Those left were forced by stay put by the livid Minister who threatened to take action if they left. The fracas on, the Haridwar district pachayat president Savita Chaudhary who was also the convenor of the congregation and the district panchayat officer RKN Tripathi remained silent spectators while some others were seen persuading the participants to stay back.
The commotion started after the Minister who arrived late rebuked the participants-all representatives of the three-tier panchayat system — for asking for water to drink. The Minister exhorted them to act like ‘human beings’ and develop the power to stand heat and cold. Denied water to slake their thirst, they hit back at the Minister, saying that they would leave. Seeing many of them departing while crying foul of the ‘abusive’ Minister, Pandey erupted in anger. “We would not tolerate such kind of misbehaviour. The rural part of the State can hardly be developed through such ‘Dalal’ type elements. They are free to go if they want to,” he shouted. Not yet content, he threatened them from the stage. “All these miscreants have been identified and their photographs have been shot. Action would be taken against them,” he said. The threat seemed to have sobered many of them as they fell in line and returned.
While commenting on what had happened during the congregation, a block development committee member from Tehri, Vijay Ghansola said that he was stunned by the language the Minister used against those who came here to participate in the event. “I wonder what the State Government would do for the development of the rural Uttarakhand when such a mercurial person is running the Panchayati Raj department,” he said. “When I was trying to pacify the agitated members the Minister asked me to leave the stage. I did what he asked me to do. Things were strange and unfortunate,” he said.
What is more, the Minister also snubbed the city mayor Manoj Garg and sternly asked him to sit down when the latter was found seeking to calm down the agitated panchayat members.
“What happened during the event is unprecedented. Things bode ill for the development of rural Uttarakhand. Development can hardly come through such fractiousness,” said an observer.