Fight for right: Cong tells its panchayats
Monday, 24/08/2015
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BHOGPUR (JALANDHAR): To regain its lost ground, the Congress party will launch a movement to empower its representatives in panchayati raj institutions by creating awareness among them about their rights so that they are able to tackle systemic discrimination, former party MP and national chairperson of Rajiv Gandhi Panchayati Raj Organisation Meenakshi Natarajan has said.
Former Congress MP and Rajiv Gandhi Panchayati Raj Organisation national chairperson Meenakshi Natarajan (centre) interacting with members of Laroya village panchayat at Bhogpur in Jalandhar district on Sunday.
In town participate at a district convention at Laroya village at Bhogpur block of the district on Sunday, she added, “The 2017 Punjab assembly elections are important for the Congress and this movement (to strengthen the party structure in villages) would bear fruit then,” claimed Natarajan, who is considered to be a close aide of Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi.
“Panchayats headed by Congress sarpanches in Punjab are facing discrimination. Even the most basic of their rights is being denied to them,” she claimed. “These panchayats will be organised by informing them about their rights,” she claimed, adding that even in several other states, where the Congress was not in power, opposition parties were denying rights to the panchayats.
“It is demoralising that Congress-backed panchayats are not treated on an equal footing with those where the SADBJP in majority. Panchayats have a right to take legal fight against such discrimination,” the former MP claimed.
