Gandhi's dream of decentralization, women reservation prefaced by Rajiv Gandhi: Siddaramaiah

Siddaramaiah was speaking at the inauguration of the 2023 Gandhi Gram Puraskar award ceremony and Swachha Sarvekshana Rural State level award distribution programme organized by the Rural Development and Panchayat Raj Department held at the Banquet Hall, Vidhana Soudha.

"Decentralization was Gandhi's dream. This is the only way democracy can succeed. He believed that the development of the country and the state would be possible through decentralization. Thus he advocated grama swaraj," Siddaramaiah said.

The Chief Minister explained that Gandhi believed that the country would not develop without the development of villages.

"Former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi as per the aspirations of Mahatma Gandhi, wrote a preface for decentralization," Siddaramaiah said.

He explained that it was Rajiv Gandhi who amended the Constitution for democratic decentralization and former Prime Minister Narasimha Rao implemented it.

Rajiv Gandhi and the Congress government were responsible for implementing 50 per cent reservation in local bodies and panchayats, Siddaramaiah said adding that it is the Congress that has written the rationale for political reservation for women, which is now claimed to have been implemented by the central government.

"Now it is our insistence that reservation should be made for backward class women as well," Siddaramaiah said.

Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar, Rural Development Minister Priyank Kharge, Vidha Parishath Chief Whip Salim Ahmed, Chief Minister's political secretaries Nasir Ahmed, Govindaraju and other leaders and senior officers were present as well.

The Chief Minister said that the government has thought of setting up village courts with the ambition that the disputes of the villages should be settled in the villages.

"According to Mahatma Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi's vision of village swaraj and decentralization of power, the establishment of village courts will be of great benefit to the villagers," he said.

Speaking about the development of Khadi-village industries the Chief Minister assured that steps will be taken to expand the market for 'gramodyoga' products. (ANI)