PANCHAYATI RAJ, 1992 - POWER TO THE PEOPLE

Empowering grassroots governance, the 73rd and 74th Amendments to the Indian Constitution redefined democracy, ushering in local self-rule and inclusivity

- BY KAUSHIK DEKA

By the late 1980s, India's political structure was grappling with systemic challenges. Development programmes launched in the name of rural upliftment were floundering, stymied by inefficiencies, corruption and a glaring disconnect between policy and the grassroots. Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs), envisioned in Article 40 of the Directive Principles, were largely symbolic entities, hamstrung by irregular elections, inadequate financial powers and captured by the elite. The urban landscape was equally fragmented, with municipalities undermined by state interference, fiscal insolvency and ad-hoc governance.

Rajiv Gandhi, buoyed by a massive electoral mandate in 1984, sought to change that. The Panchayati Raj and Nagar Palika Bills, finally introduced in 1989, proposed constitutional status to PRIs and urban local bodies (ULBs), ensuring regular elections, reservations for marginalised groups and financial devolution. However, the political turbulence of the late '80s, including the backlash from the Shah Bano case and the Mandal Commission report, weakened Gandhi's political capital. His assassination in 1991 tragically cut short his reformist agenda.