Chandigarh, September 19: The elections to over 13,000 gram panchayats in Punjab will be held by October 20, according to a notification issued by the state rural development and panchayats on Thursday. "In exercise of the powers conferred by sub-section (1) of section 209 of the Punjab Panchayati Raj Act, 1994 (Punjab Act 9 of 1994), and all other powers enabling him in this behalf, the Governor of Punjab is pleased to direct that the general election of the members of the Gram Panchayats, shall be held by the 20th October, 2024," said the notification.

The Punjab Assembly had earlier this month passed the Punjab Panchayati Raj (Amendment) Bill, 2024, aimed at holding the elections for 'sarpanch' and 'panch' without the symbols of political parties. Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann had then said that it would remove "groupism" in the villages and ensure holistic development of the rural areas. Punjab Panchayat Election: Assembly Passes Bill Aimed To Hold Elections for Sarpanch and Panch Without Party Symbols, CM Bhagwant Mann Says Polls To Be Held Soon.

The Punjab State Election Commission had last month said that it was in the process of making suitable logistical arrangements for conducting the general elections to the gram panchayats in the state. Notably, in February this year, the rural development and panchayat department had dissolved the gram panchayats, which had completed a five-year term. Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann Inaugurates Anti-Narcotics Task Force, Says AAP Government Will Give Special Grants to Drug-Free Villages (See Pics and Video).

In August last year, the state government had dissolved all 13,241 gram panchayats through a notification. However, the AAP government had to withdraw its notification of dissolution of the gram panchayats after the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) challenged its August 10 notification in the Punjab and Haryana High Court. The government had then suspended its two senior IAS officers for taking a "technically flawed" decision on dissolution of the panchayats.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)