{{Short description|Form of local government}} {{redirect|Panchayat}} {{Use dmy dates|date=May 2021}} {{Use Indian English|date=December 2015}} [[File:Muhamma grama panchayath.jpg|thumbnail|A Panchayat office in [[Muhamma]], Kerala]] The '''Panchayat raj '''is a [[political system]] originating from the [[Indian subcontinent]], primarily found in [[India]] and neighboring countries [[Pakistan]], [[Bangladesh]], [[Sri Lanka]], and [[Nepal]].<ref>Although it is also found in other places such as [[Trinidad and Tobago]]. {{cite web|url=http://www.markedbyteachers.com/gcse/history/the-panchayat-system-as-an-early-form-of-conflict-resolution-in-trinidad.html|title=The Panchayat system as an early form of conflict resolution in Trinidad - GCSE History|website=www.markedbyteachers.com|access-date=27 August 2017|archive-date=13 September 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210913163018/https://www.markedbyteachers.com/gcse/history/the-panchayat-system-as-an-early-form-of-conflict-resolution-in-trinidad.html|url-status=live}} {{cite news|url=http://www.newsday.co.tt/news/0,228484.html|title=Carmona wants "Panchayat" system to resolve conflicts|work=Trinidad and Tobago Newsday|date=30 May 2016|archive-date=27 August 2017|access-date=27 August 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170827132222/http://www.newsday.co.tt/news/0,228484.html|url-status=live}} {{cite news|url=http://www.newsday.co.tt/news/0,27598.html|title=Return of the panchayat|work=Trinidad and Tobago Newsday|date=12 May 2005|archive-date=27 August 2017|access-date=27 August 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170827165437/http://www.newsday.co.tt/news/0,27598.html|url-status=live}}</ref> It is one of the oldest systems of [[local government]] in the Indian subcontinent, with historical mentions dating back to around 250 CE.<ref name="ref23goroq">{{Citation | title= Political Institutions & Administration | author= P.B. Udgaonkar | year= 1986 | publisher= Motilal Banarasidass Publishers, 1986 | isbn= 978-81-20-82087-6 | url= https://books.google.com/books?id=Jdoym34QydQC&pg=PA210 | quote= ''... these popular courts are first mentioned by Yajnavalkya and then by Narada, Brishaspati, Somadeva and Sukra. These writers covered a period of about a thousand years, c. 100 to 1950 A.D., and they could not have mechanically referred to the popular courts if they were not actually functioning ...''}}</ref> The word 'raj' means 'rule,' and panchayat' means 'assembly' (''ayat'') of 'five' (''panch''). Traditionally, panchayats consisted of wise and respected elders chosen and accepted by the local community. These assemblies resolved disputes between individuals and villages. However, there were various forms of such assemblies.
The leader of the panchayat was often called the president, [[mukhi]]ya, [[sarpanch]], or [[pradhan]], which was an elected or generally acknowledged position. The modern panchayati raj system of India and its [[gram panchayat]]s should not be confused with the traditional system or the extra-constitutional [[khap]] panchayats (or caste panchayats) found in parts of northern India.<ref>{{Cite news | title = Panchayats turn into kangaroo courts | date = 9 September 2007 | author1 = Mullick, Rohit | author2 = Raaj, Neelam | name-list-style = amp | newspaper = The Times of India | url = http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Opinion/Sunday_Specials/Panchayats_turn_into_kangaroo_courts/rssarticleshow/2351247.cms | archive-date = 4 May 2008 | access-date = 7 June 2015 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080504180553/http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Opinion/Sunday_Specials/Panchayats_turn_into_kangaroo_courts/rssarticleshow/2351247.cms | url-status = live }}</ref>
[[File:Panchayat India.jpg|thumb|Open Panchayat near Narsingarh, [[Madhya Pradesh]]]] [[Mahatma Gandhi]] advocated for panchayat raj as the foundation of India's political system. It was envisioned as a decentralized form of government, where each village would be responsible for its own affairs.<ref>{{Cite journal|author=Sisodia, R. S. |year=1971 |title=Gandhiji's Vision of Panchayati Raj |journal=Panchayat Aur Insan |volume=3 |issue=2 |pages=9–10}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|author=Sharma, Manohar Lal |year=1987 |title=Gandhi and Democratic Decentralization in India |location=New Delhi |publisher=Deep and Deep Publications|oclc=17678104}} [http://catalog.hathitrust.org/Record/000916234 HathiTrust copy, search only] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150605040807/http://catalog.hathitrust.org/Record/000916234 |date=5 June 2015 }}</ref> This vision was termed ''[[Swaraj|Gram Swaraj]]'' ("village self-governance"). While India developed a highly centralized system of government,<ref>{{Cite book|author1=Hardgrave, Robert L. |author2=Kochanek, Stanley A. |name-list-style=amp |year=2008 |title=India: Government and Politics in a Developing Nation |edition=seventh |location=Boston, Massachusetts |publisher=[[Thomson/Wadsworth]] |page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=pSyRgcSQhuIC&pg=PT157 157] |isbn=978-0-495-00749-4}}</ref> this has been moderated by delegating several administrative functions to the local level, thereby empowering elected gram panchayats.<ref>{{Cite journal|author=Pellissery, S. |year=2007 |title=Do Multi-level Governance Meet Local Aspirations? |journal=Asia Pacific Journal of Public Administration |volume=28 |issue=1 |pages=28–40}}</ref>
[[Jawaharlal Nehru]] inaugurated the panchayati raj system at [[Nagaur]] on 2 October 1959. The date was chosen to coincide with [[Mahatma Gandhi]]'s birthday. Gandhi envisioned Gram Swaraj through the panchayati raj system.<ref name="Sharma">{{cite book | last=Sharma | first=Shakuntla | title=Grass Root Politics and Panchayati Raj | publisher=Deep & Deep Publications | year=1994 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wOotj52KG9QC | page=131}}</ref><ref name="Singh">{{cite book | last=Singh | first=Surat | title=Decentralised Governance in India: Myth and Reality | publisher=Deep & Deep Publications | year=2004 | isbn=978-81-7629-577-2 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=e-4taHca3HQC | page=74}}</ref> The system was later modified in 1992.<ref>{{Cite book|author=Singh, Vijandra |year=2003 |chapter=Chapter 5: Panchayate Raj and Gandhi |title=Panchayati Raj and Village Development: Volume 3, Perspectives on Panchayati Raj Administration |series=Studies in public administration |location=New Delhi |publisher=Sarup & Sons |pages=84–90|isbn=978-81-7625-392-5}}</ref> [[File:Grampanchayat Raj Bhavan, Basuki Bihari North.jpg|thumb|View of the ''Grampanchayat Raj Bhavan'' at [[Basuki Bihari]] North]]
==In the Indian subcontinent== {{main|Panchayati raj in India}}
===Early history=== {{see also|Monarchy in ancient India}}
The Hindu text [[Rigveda]] (1700 BCE) provides evidence suggesting that self-governing village bodies called ''sabhas'' existed.<ref>{{cite book|title=Panchayat Raj in India: Emerging Trends Across the States|publisher=Rawat Publications|author=R. P. Joshi, G. S. Narwani|year=2002|page=21}}</ref> Over time, these bodies evolved into panchayats (five-person councils). Panchayats were functional institutions of [[grassroots]] governance in almost every village. The village panchayat or elected council had significant powers, both executive and judicial. It distributed land, collected taxes from the produce, and paid the government's share on behalf of the village. Above these village councils, a larger panchayat or council existed to supervise and intervene if necessary.<ref>[[Jawaharlal Nehru]], (1964), ''[[The Discovery of India]]'', Signet Press, Calcutta, p.288</ref> However, [[Caste|casteism]] and the feudalistic system of governance under Mughal rule during the medieval period gradually eroded self-government in villages. A new class of feudal chiefs and revenue collectors ([[zamindar]]s) emerged between the ruler and the people, leading to the stagnation and decline of self-government in villages.
A detailed account of how a medieval South Indian village council functioned is carved into a temple wall in [[Uthiramerur]], a village in [[Tamil Nadu]], approximately 85 kilometers (53 miles) west of [[Chennai]]. Thirty council members were chosen by lot, a form of [[sortition]]. Males were eligible for selection if they were of good character and met certain requirements based on landholdings and knowledge of Hindu scriptures. They were then assigned to various committees responsible for irrigation works, gardens, and other matters.<ref>{{cite book |title= The First Spring: Life in the Golden Age of India |author=Abraham Eraly |publisher=Penguin Books |pages=184–186 |year= 2011 |isbn=9780143424574}}</ref>
===During British rule=== {{main|British Raj}}
The British were generally not concerned with local administration, leaving it to the local rulers. They did not interfere with existing panchayati systems or encourage rulers to consider more democratic institutions at the local level.<ref>George Mathew, Ed :Status of Panchayati Raj in the States and Union Territories of India 2000/edited by George Mathew. Delhi, Concept for Institute of Social Sciences, 2000,</ref> The rulers were interested in creating 'controlled' local bodies that could assist in their trading interests by collecting taxes on their behalf. When the colonial administration faced severe financial pressure after the 1857 uprising, decentralization was pursued by transferring responsibility for road and public works to local bodies. However, this 'compelled' decentralization primarily focused on municipal administration.
The panchayat was dismantled by the [[East India Company]] when it was granted the office of Diwan in 1765 in Bengal by the [[Nawabs of Bengal|nawab]], as part of reparation following his [[Battle of Buxar|defeat at Buxar]]. As Diwan, the Company made two key decisions. First, it abolished the village land record office and established a company official called the [[Village accountant|Patwari]], who became the official record keeper for multiple villages. Second, it created the office of magistrate and abolished the village police. The magistrate performed policing functions through the [[Darogha]], who had always been a state functionary under the [[Faujdar]]. The primary purpose of these measures was the collection of land revenue by decree. The depredations of the Patwari and the Darogha, which became a part of Indian folklore, contributed to the worst [[Great Bengal famine of 1770|famine in Bengal]], with its effects lingering until the end of the 18th century. These measures completely disempowered the village community and destroyed the panchayat. After 1857, the British attempted to restore the panchayat by granting it powers to try minor offences and resolve village disputes, but these measures did not restore the lost powers of the village community.<ref>{{cite thesis |last=Hulleppa |first=Sharanappa |date=22 October 2016 |title=The Changing Role of Administration in India since 1990 A Study |chapter-url=https://shodhganga.inflibnet.ac.in/bitstream/10603/136758/10/10_chapter%205.pdf |degree=PhD |chapter=Measures to Strengthen the Indian Administration |publisher=Gulbarga University}}</ref>
From 1870, when [[Richard Bourke, 6th Earl of Mayo|Lord Mayo]]'s Resolution on decentralization aimed to improve administrative efficiency, meet public demands, and bolster colonial finances, there was significant impetus for the development of local institutions. This resolution was a landmark in the evolution of colonial policy towards local government. However, the real benchmark for government policy on decentralization can be attributed to Lord Ripon. In his famous resolution on local self-government on 18 May 1882, Ripon addressed the twin considerations of administrative efficiency and political education. The Ripon Resolution, which focused on towns, provided for local bodies consisting of a large majority of elected non-official members and presided over by a non-official chairperson. This resolution faced resistance from colonial administrators, and the progress of local self-government was slow, with only half-hearted efforts made in setting up municipal bodies. Rural [[decentralisation|decentralization]], in particular, remained a neglected area of administrative reform.
The Royal Commission on Decentralization (1907), chaired by Sir H. W. Primrose, recognized the importance of panchayats at the village level. The commission recommended that 'it is most desirable, both in the interests of decentralization and to involve the people in the local administration tasks, to attempt to constitute and develop village panchayats for the administration of local village affairs.'<ref>Report of the Royal-Commission on Decentralisation, 1907</ref>
However, the [[Montagu–Chelmsford Reforms|Montague-Chelmsford Reforms (1919)]] introduced local self-government as a provincial transferred subject, coming under the domain of Indian ministers in the provinces. Due to organizational and fiscal constraints, the reforms were unable to make panchayat institutions truly democratic and vibrant. Nevertheless, a significant development of this period was the 'establishment of village panchayats in several provinces, which were no longer mere ad hoc judicial tribunals but representative institutions symbolizing the corporate character of the village and having wide jurisdiction over civic matters.' By 1925, eight provinces had enacted panchayat acts, and by 1926, six native states had also passed panchayat laws.
Provincial autonomy under the Government of India Act, 1935, marked the evolution of panchayats in [[India]]. Elected provincial governments enacted legislation to further democratize local self-government institutions. However, the system of responsible government at the grassroots level was notably ineffective. D. P. Mishra, the then minister for local self-government under the Government of India Act of 1935 in the Central Provinces, observed that "the working of our local bodies ... in our province and perhaps in the whole country presents a tragic picture ... 'Inefficiency' and 'local body' have become synonymous terms."<ref>Venkatarangaiah, M. and M. Pattabhiram (1969), 'Local Government in India: Select Readings', Allied Publishers, New Delhi</ref>
Despite various committees such as the Royal Commission on Decentralization (1907), the Montagu-Chelmsford Report on constitutional reform (1919), and the Government of India Resolution (1919), a hierarchical administrative structure based on supervision and control evolved. The administrator became the focal point of rural governance. The British were not concerned with decentralized democracy but were pursuing colonial objectives.<ref>Venkatarangaiah, M. and M. Pattabhiram (1969), 'Local Government in India:Select Readings', Allied Publishers, New Delhi</ref>
From the 1920s to 1947, the [[Indian National Congress]] emphasized the issue of all-India Swaraj and organized movements for independence under the leadership of Mahatma Gandhi. As a result, the task of preparing a blueprint for local governance was neglected. There was no consensus among the top leaders regarding the status and role of rural local self-government, leading to divergent views on the subject. [[Gandhi]] favored Village Swaraj and aimed to strengthen the village panchayat to the fullest extent, while Dr. B.R. Ambedkar opposed this idea. He viewed the village as a symbol of regressive India and a source of oppression, believing that the model state needed safeguards against such social oppression, which could only be achieved through the adoption of the parliamentary model of politics.<ref>World Bank, (2000), Overview of Rural Decentralisation in India, Volume III, p. 18</ref> During the drafting of the Constitution of India, Panchayati Raj Institutions were included in the non-justiciable part of the Constitution, the [[Directive Principles|Directive Principles of State Policy]], as Article 40. This Article stated, 'The State shall take steps to organize village panchayats and endow them with such powers and authority as may be necessary to enable them to function as units of self-government.' However, no substantial legislation was enacted at either the national or state level to implement it.
Jawaharlal Nehru inaugurated the Panchayati Raj system at [[Nagaur]], Rajasthan, on 2 October 1959, to coincide with [[Mahatma Gandhi]]'s birthday. Gandhi had envisioned Gram Swaraj through Panchayati Raj.<ref name="Sharma"/> Rajasthan was the first state to implement it. Nehru also inaugurated Panchayati Raj in Andhra Pradesh on 11 October 1959, on the occasion of [[Dussehra]]. The system was gradually established across India.<ref name="Singh"/>
In the four decades since the adoption of the [[Constitution]], panchayat raj institutions have evolved from being part of the non-justiciable Directive Principles to acquiring a new status through a separate constitutional amendment.<ref>Bajpai and Verma, (1995), Panchayati Raj in India.</ref>
===Post-Independence period=== {{Unreferenced section|date=July 2025}} Panchayat raj went through various stages. The First [[Five-Year Plans of India|Five-Year Plan]] failed to achieve active [[participation (decision making)|participation]] and involvement of the people in Plan processes, including formulation, implementation, and monitoring. The Second Five-Year Plan aimed to cover the entire countryside through National Extension Service Blocks, utilizing Block Development Officers, Assistant Development Officers, Village Level Workers, as well as nominated representatives of village panchayats and other popular organizations like cooperative societies. However, this plan did not satisfactorily accomplish decentralization. Consequently, various committees were constituted to advise the central government on different aspects of decentralization.
To advance the [[Gandhi]]an goal of direct political participation at the grassroots level, the National Development Council appointed a committee under [[Balwant Rai Mehta]] in 1957. The committee submitted its report in 1958, recommending a three-tier structure consisting of a Zila Parishad at the district level, a Panchayat Samiti at the block level, and a Gram Panchayat at the village level.
The next major change in the panchayat system of India came with the passage of the [[Seventy-third Amendment of the Constitution of India|Panchayati Raj Act (73rd Amendment)]] in 1992<ref>[https://cdnbbsr.s3waas.gov.in/s316026d60ff9b54410b3435b403afd226/uploads/2023/02/2023022123-1.pdf The Gazette of India (Extraordinary) https://cdnbbsr.s3waas.gov.in/s316026d60ff9b54410b3435b403afd226/uploads/2023/02/2023022123-1.pdf]</ref>. A key motivation behind this act was the belief that local governments could be more effective than centrally appointed bureaucrats in identifying and responding to the needs of villages. Consequently, this act was a significant step in India's move towards decentralization.
The main features of this act are: (a) a three-tier system of Panchayati Raj for all states with a population of over 20 lakh; (b) regular Panchayat elections every five years; (c) reservation of seats for [[Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes|Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes]], and women (not less than one-third of the seats); and (d) the appointment of a State Finance Commission to recommend the financial powers of the Panchayats. Thus, in theory, Panchayats have been given sufficient authority to function as institutions of self-governance and promote social justice.
There have been several positive effects of this amendment, some of which are listed above. However, there is also evidence of deeply ingrained vote-trading structures maintained through extra-political means. This issue can potentially be attributed to the fact that Gram Sabhas have not been sufficiently empowered and strengthened to ensure greater public participation and transparency in the functioning of Panchayats, as envisaged in the Panchayat Act.
==See also== * [[Panchayat (Nepal)]] * [[Khap panchayat]]
==References== {{Reflist}}
==Further reading== * {{citation|editor=Rajiv Balakrishnan|title=Participatory Pathways: People's Participation in Development Initiatives|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Chvak7Vu9xYC|year=2007|publisher=Pearson Education India|isbn=978-81-317-0034-1}}
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[[Category:Forms of local government]] [[Category:Panchayati raj (India)| ]]