Breaking 'Sarpanch Pati Raj'

Despite three decades of constitutional reservation ensuring women’s entry into grassroots politics, real power often remains with husbands who operate as ‘proxy rulers’

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The 'Sarpanch Pati' phenomenon is an unconstitutional practice of husbands and other male relatives of elected women Sarpanches exercising authority on their behalf. Disapproving of this practice of proxy representation, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has issued conditional summons to 32 states, including the Union Territories. The Commission thus directed its Registry to issue Conditional Summons to the Principal Secretary, Department of Urban Local Bodies and Principal Secretary, Department of Panchayati Raj, of Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Chhattisgarh, Goa, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Punjab, Rajasthan, Sikkim, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Tripura, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Chandigarh, Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Daman and Diu, Delhi (National Capital Territory), Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh, Lakshadweep and Puducherry. The above-mentioned authorities are directed to appear before the Commission on December 30, 2025, with Action Taken Reports on the steps taken by the respective governments to eliminate the unconstitutional practice of 'Sarpanch Pati'.

A few states, including Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Odisha, and Uttarakhand, have already submitted their responses. The Commission, in its letter, mentioned the rising concerns regarding the persistent violations of constitutional mandates and human rights in the functioning of Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs) and Urban Local Bodies (ULBs), particularly in constituencies reserved for women.