SrinagarThe Jammu and Kashmir High Court on Saturday issued a notice to government on a plea alleging unnecessary interference by a Block President of ruling PDP in development works under Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MNREGA) in Anantnag district of the south Kashmir.
In fact, the petitionersFarooq Ahmad Rather and Saqib Shabir Ratheralleged that the block president Abdul Salam Tantray is acting as an extra constitutional authority, running a parallel government in their area, Nowshera Sriguweara.
A division bench of the court sought the response from government through commissioner secretary Rural Development Department and Director RDD by next date of hearing in the petition.
The petitioners said that the officials are having large budgetary allocation under (MNREGA) for development of the Rural Areas and for providing guaranteed Job to the Rural Population. The MNREGA which is a central legislation provides a scheme for distribution of the funds and process of expenditure in detail at the Panchayat Halqa Level.
After the allocation of funds to the Panchayat Halqa, Gram Sabha which is meeting of the entire population of a Panchayat Halqa on spot is held to finalize the list of developmental works to be undertaken in a particular financial year.
After allocation of the funds to the petitioners village for the financial year 2017-18 under the MNREGA the respondents called a meeting of Gram Sabha in the village wherein the list of development works was finalized and near about 100 developmental works were identified and list was prepared with respect to the Rural connectivity and micro-irrigation in the village with the consensus that the works will be taken in the order of priorities to be decided subsequently in Gram Sabha, he said, adding, That the respondent No. 5 who is Block President of the Peoples Democratic Party which is a part of the Ruling establishment without any authority and competence is interfering in the implementation of the MNREGA plan 2017-18 in the village by firstly dictating the prioritization of development works and by employing the agents of his political party as brokers, contractors, commission agents in the development works which is totally prohibited under the MNREGA.
The block president and his henchmen are working as middle men and earning large amounts as commission in the process of implementation of the MNREGA plan, the petitioner said.
(Tantray) at the behest of the ruling political party is interfering in the implementation of the MNREGA which is totally against the letter and spirit of scheme. The very objective of MNREGA is to do away with the requirement of middle men and commission agents and the state has taken upon its own shoulders the responsibility to provide employment to the rural population in their own village.”
Besides, the petitioners said the developmental works in the rural areas are also intended to be carried on with the help, employment and participation of the local population. The political interference is totally unethical to the very idea of MNREGA scheme.
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