Panchayats struggle as TMC Sarpanches lie low, fearing reprisals in BJP regime

The post-poll violence in West Bengal appears to have taken a toll on governance in the state's villages, with the prolonged absence of elected panchayat heads stalling development works and disrupting the functioning of grassroots institutions.

When the chief of a gram panchayat in Purba Bardhaman finally returned to office after weeks in hiding, she had expected the worst was over. Instead, she said, the fear had only deepened.

Fear grips Panchayat chiefs

The woman, who requested anonymity, said over the phone that she now hesitates to visit the panchayat office regularly. Her deputy has stopped coming altogether.

According to the West Bengal government's own estimates, nearly 2,000 gram panchayat pradhans, almost all belonging to the TMC, have become inactive since the BJP came to power in the state.

They say decisions that were once taken inside the elected body are increasingly being influenced by informal local committees.

Residents, angry over delays in welfare schemes, turned up at the office to confront her, while she said repeated requests for security had yielded little reassurance.

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"How am I supposed to run the panchayat? The deputy chief is not coming. I no longer receive guidance from the party. I feel completely helpless," she said.

2,000 Pradhans go into hiding

Her predicament was no longer an isolated one.

According to the West Bengal government's own estimates, nearly 2,000 gram panchayat ‘pradhans’, also called ‘sarpanches’, almost all belonging to the TMC, have become inactive since the BJP came to power in the state.

Many are believed to have gone into hiding after the Assembly election, fearing political reprisals and attacks.

The prolonged absence of these elected representatives has left hundreds of panchayats struggling to function at a time when the pradhans are responsible for implementing some of the state's largest welfare and development programmes.

Schemes such as the state's 125-day rural employment programme, the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana and projects financed through state and central finance commission grants have all been affected.

The situation has become serious enough for the state government to consider issuing show-cause notices to elected representatives who continued to remain absent from office.

Bengal govt mulls tweaks to law

Simultaneously, according to official sources, the state government is also contemplating amendments to the West Bengal Panchayat Act, 1973, that would transfer the power to authorise financial transactions from elected pradhans to senior executive officials.

Unlike block-level Panchayat Samitis and Zilla Parishads, where executive officers control financial transactions, every payment at the gram panchayat level currently requires the signature of the elected pradhan.

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Officials said that with thousands of chiefs either absent or unable to function freely, development projects have dramatically slowed down.

Schemes such as the state's 125-day rural employment programme, the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana and projects financed through state and central finance commission grants have all been affected, according to officials familiar with the development.

Absence, delays anger villagers

The disruption, visible across several districts, has led to violence in some villages.

In Nadia district, the pressure spilled over into violence when a panchayat chief in Shantipur was allegedly assaulted at his home by women demanding pending Annapurna Yojana payments on July 5.

Similar complaints surfaced in East Midnapore’s Shahid Matangini block, where residents of Kharui No 1 Gram Panchayat staged protests on July 7 alleging that the Sarpanch had stopped attending office for more than a month after criminal cases were filed following post-election clashes.

Villagers said routine administration, including work under the Annapurna Yojana, has come to a standstill.

Pradhans face physical attacks

In Kalna subdivision of East Burdwan, a panchayat chief, on condition of anonymity, said he had been assaulted while attempting to resume work after receiving assurances from both the administration and local BJP leaders.

"I suffered an eye injury after being attacked and pelted with eggs. I am still undergoing treatment and am running the panchayat from home," he said. "Now I am being threatened that women who have not received Annapurna Yojana benefits will surround my house," he added.

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Another panchayat chief, Shyamal Garai of Akalpoush Gram Panchayat in Kalna, alleged that he had been dragged out of bed and assaulted after returning home following the election.

"Both I and my family were attacked after the election results. Even after I resumed work, I was assaulted again. How can I work if I am not provided security?" he said.

In another incident, women protesting against delays in Annapurna Yojana payments threw eggs at the chief of Atghoria-Simlan Gram Panchayat, demanding answers over the non-release of benefits.

Is BJP orchestrating attacks?

Several other panchayat chiefs in East Burdwan alleged that while one section of the BJP had publicly assured them that they could work safely, local political tensions continue to make day-to-day administration difficult.

The BJP, however, rejected the allegations.

The absenteeism has compounded pressure on panchayat offices, where employees were already overburdened with beneficiary verification under multiple welfare schemes.

Smritikana Basu, a BJP leader from East Burdwan district, said workers of the party were not preventing elected representatives from functioning.

"We want them to attend office so that people receive public services. Some chiefs and deputy chiefs are staying away because of corruption allegations against them," she said.

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The CPI(M), meanwhile, said political interference in panchayats needs to stop, irrespective of which party was responsible.

"If people are to receive public services, panchayat chiefs must be allowed to work without fear," East Burdwan district committee member Pradip Saha said.

Verifications, certificate issuance stalled

The absenteeism has compounded pressure on panchayat offices, where employees were already overburdened with beneficiary verification under multiple welfare schemes.

They said routine administration has slowed sharply as staff struggles to cope with the verification exercise, delaying birth and death certificates, building plan approvals and the preparation of development projects.

Birth and death certificates have been delayed, building plan approvals have slowed down, and preparation of development projects has suffered because much of the available manpower had been diverted, they said.

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A panchayat chief in Chinsurah-Mogra block in Hooghly district, requesting anonymity, said the panchayat employees were simultaneously verifying beneficiaries under the Annapurna Yojana, rural housing schemes, old-age pensions, widow pensions, disability pensions and welfare programmes for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes.

Of the nearly 2,000 affected gram panchayats, pradhans in around 150 cases had either submitted resignation requests or were facing no-confidence motions, government sources said.

"As a result, they are practically unable to perform any other work. Meetings are not taking place, planning has stopped, and people are suffering," he said.

Officials acknowledged that beneficiary verification was consuming enormous administrative resources, although they said they were implementing government directives.

Resignations, protests in 150 panchayats

Of the nearly 2,000 affected gram panchayats, pradhans in around 150 cases had either submitted resignation requests or were facing no-confidence motions, according to the state government sources.

The overwhelming majority continues to have elected chiefs who legally remain in office, but either stay absent or are unable to perform their responsibilities.

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Since the Panchayat Act provides no mechanism to appoint administrators in such circumstances, the government views the legislative amendments as a necessary step to prevent local governance from grinding to a halt.

Will govt clip wings?

Panchayat Minister Dilip Ghosh said West Bengal is the only state where gram panchayat chiefs possess extensive financial powers and that the government intends to withdraw those powers through an amendment to the law.

Yet the proposed legislation addresses only the administrative bottleneck.

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For many panchayat chiefs, the larger problem remains one of personal security.

"We are increasingly living in fear," a Sarpanch elected chief in Birbhum district said. "We do not feel comfortable carrying out panchayat work."