The 73^rd Constitution Amendment - A Case for Further Amendment (First Published in Vol.16, No.4, October-December, 1997)

Abstract

Delineating the factors responsible for the Constitution Seventy-Third Amendment and analysing the function-ing of PRIs in the country the paper underlines the need to have a further amendment to revitalise panchayati raj institutions and make them vibrant institutions in the coun-try. Although high hopes were pinned down by providing constitutional status to PRIs, in actual practice, at opera-tional level, they were saddled with a variety of problems. Gram sabha which was the pivot of panchayati raj in the new PR dispensation, was sidelined to a corner in some states. There were some other impediments too affecting the functioning of PRIs in respect of structural pattern of Panchayati Raj, composition of panchayats, organic linkages of PRIs, direct elections to PRIs, representation of MLAs, MLCs and MPs in PRIs, the concept of rotation in the case of reserved seats, devolution of powers and functions to PRIs, bureaucratic control over PRIs, functional devolution and financial devolution, etc. Against the backdrop, the paper suggests that the remedy lies in making another amendment to the constitution to rectify the anomalies for a decentralised governance.