Andhra Pradeshs Panchayat Raj Chamber president Y.V.B. Rajendra Prasad and State Sarpanches Association president Vanapalli Lakshmi Mutyalarao have called upon sarpanches, MPTC members, MPPs, ZPTC members, councillors and corporators to defeat the YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) in the 2024 general elections to save the local bodies.
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Addressing a media conference here on Tuesday, they said that the decision was taken as they had no alternative with the State government depriving the local bodies of their funds by diverting for other purposes, apart from stripping of the powers of the elected representatives of local bodies and promoting ‘Volunteers’. They called upon the representatives of local bodies, irrespective of their party affiliations, to defeat the YSRCP.
Mr. Rajendra Prasad alleged that the funds sanctioned to panchayats were diverted for the ‘Navaratnalu’ programme of the YSRCP government. The local body representatives of all political parties have been organising protests across the State demanding restoration of funds and powers to the local bodies but the government has failed to concede their demands. He alleged that 3.5 crore people of 12,918 villages in the State were suffering due to the diversion of funds by the State government, and they were blaming the representatives of local bodies though the fault lies with the government.
Ms. Lakshmi Mutyalarao said that during the last three years, the representatives of local bodies could not take up any development works like construction of roads, drains, provision of street lights and supply of drinking water in their respective villages. Though the villagers, who had elected them, were abusing them, they were not in a position to say anything. This was because during the last three years, the State government has not failed to give panchayats their share of funds, but also diverted the funds given by the Centre and also the revenue generated by the panchayats for other purposes. She also alleged that the State government had deprived them of their powers by coming up with the parallel system of ‘village volunteers’, village secretariats, which was against the Constitution.
They said that a decision was taken to intensify the agitation by staging protests in all districts of the State if the six-point charter of demands was not met by the State government. A.P. Panchayat Raj Chamber general secretary B. Pratap Reddy was present.