DMK president M. Karunanidhi on Saturday said the proposal of the BJP-led NDA government to close down the Ministry of Panchayati Raj would negate Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s dictum “minimum government; maximum governance.”
In a statement here, he said closing down the Ministry and bringing the local bodies under the control of Rural Development Ministry was a retrograde move. “In a democracy if the government administration is a banyan tree, the local bodies are its supporting roots. Narendra Modi should keep in mind that local bodies are the lifeline of people’s democracy,” he said. Mr. Karunanidhi said even though former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi introduced the Panchayat Raj Act, it could be implemented only after the 73{+r}{+d}Amendment to the Constitution. “Even though there were local bodies in the country before the enactment of the Panchayat Raj Act, they were under the control of the conservative and oppressive forces. Only after the amendment, people in the lower rung of society could occupy posts in local bodies,” he said.
