The just-concluded panchayat elections in the 12 districts of Uttarakhand witnessed unprecedented expenditure by the contesting candidates. The candidates for the positions of pradhans and member district panchayat were more magnanimous in spending money to woo the rural electorate.
According to a rough estimate, the serious contestants for the position of pradhan spent about `10-12 lakh each while the aspirants of member district panchayat coughed up nearly `20 lakh each for the campaigning.
Many candidates of member district panchayat and member block panchayat had the tactical support of influential local leaders. These leaders also ensured finance for these candidates from the businessmen. One of the aspirants of the member district panchayat from the Ekeshwar block of Pauri Garhwal district, who narrowly lost the election, told the correspondent that his opponent was propped up by the local sand mafia.
Dejected by his loss he revealed that he had lost a fortune in these polls. The candidates spent most of their budget in arranging liquor for their supporters. The cheap liquor from the States like Punjab and Haryana flowed freely in these polls.
The State Election Commission (SEC) has asked all the contestants to submit the expense they incurred in these elections, it has even set up deadline of one month from declaration of results of the Panchayat elections. In the three tier Panchayati Raj system the positions of Member Village Panchayat, Pradhan Village Panchayat, Member Block Panchayat and Member District Panchayat are directly elected by the rural electorate. A look at the maximum spendable limit for the different positions of the Panchayat polls clearly indicates that the Election Commission’s limits are only a minute fraction of the actual expenditure.
The SEC has set up a maximum limit of `5,000 for the Member Village Panchayat, `25,000 for the Pradhan and the Member Block Panchayat and `70,000 for the Member District Panchayat.
The newly-elected Member Village Panchayat, Member Block Panchayat and Member District Panchayat would now elect the other positions of the Panchayati Raj system. For these indirectly elected positions the SEC has set up a limit of `7,500 for Deputy Pradhan, `25,000 for Junior Deputy Pramukh, `30,000 for Senior Deputy Pramukh, `70,000 for Pramukh Block Panchayat, `12,5,000 for vice-president District Panchayat and `17,5,000 for president district panchayat. The SEC has proposed that these indirect elections could be held before the August 5 which means the aspirants of the positions of Block Pramukh and president District Panchayat has plenty of time to maneuver the Electoral College in their favour.
Many members of the Electoral College would now be virtually hijacked and would be kept at some remote resort or hotel in confinement. The confinement, however, would be with all comforts and is done to avoid poaching by the rivals.
It is interesting to note that while the contestants made rampant use of money and muscle power in these elections the State Election Commission has remained silent on these violations of model code of conduct. When inquired by the Pioneer, the Deputy Secretary of SEC B P Pandey said that the commission initiates action on the basis of the report filed by the observers and the district administration.