Rahul Gandhi vows to empower panchayats

RANCHI: Continuing his displeasure at some states not delegating power to panchayats, AICC General Secretary Rahul Gandhi has pledged that he will fight for empowerment of the rural bodies.

During his just-concluded meeting with the panchayat representatives in Ranchi, Gandhi wondered why panchayat members did not get power soon after elections when MPs and MLAs get power soon after election.

"Rahulji was disappointed when he learnt that panchayat bodies have not yet got any power to execute developmental works," Congress leader Butter Sardar who attended one of Gandhi's meetings, said here today.

Jharkhand Youth Congress President Jai Mangal Singh attended a separate meeting in Bokaro yesterday, said, "Rahulji told us he would fight for the rights of panchayats after he learnt that devolution of powers has not yet taken place in Jharkhand."

"I'll also raise the panchayat issue during the review meeting of the Youth Congress committees beginning on October 1 in Jammu and Kashmir," Singh said.