Area Sabhas - Elections

The 73rd and the 74th Constitutional Amendments provided impetus for decentralized governance through the devolution of functions, finance and functionaries to local governments based on the principle of subsidarity.

Despite the elapse of more than a decade, the objects of the amendments have not been achieved. The system has been dysfunctional in the urban areas, especially at the ward/area level. With a view to fillip to decentralized governance in urban areas, Lok Satta Party proposes constitution of Area Sabhas with elected representatives.

Citizen as Focal Point of Governance
In a democracy the elected representatives, government officials and even the whole government machinery should revolve around citizens. Instead, citizens are running around government offices and wait endlessly for basic services to be delivered. Therefore there is imperative need to institutionalize a system for citizen that clearly establishes a link between the taxes citizens pay and services they get and to oversight on delivery of services and execution of public services.

How will Area Sabhas help?
We all know that in rural areas there is a Gram Sabha, covering the entire village population, which seek to ensure citizen participation in the governance process. However, such an institutional framework is not in place for the urban areas. As a consequence, citizens in urban areas cannot effectively participate in the governance process and suffer from limited or no access to simple information such as the money that is being spent for replacing street lights in their locality, personnel who are responsible for sanitation in the locality and the amount of taxes that are being collected from our localities.

To address these lacunae Lok Satta Party has been advocating for constitution of Area Sabhas to establish a link between, citizen vote and accountability of public servants on one hand and, between taxes paid and services rendered to the citizen on the other. In order to ensure that the voice of the people finds expression in the governance process, Lok Satta Party intends to constitute People’s Area Sabhas in urban areas.

For every 1,000 voters falling within the area under a polling booth election will be conducted to choose two Area Sabha representatives and one of them will be a woman. These two elected representatives will seek to facilitate Areas Sabha meetings that will endeavor to ensure greater transparency in the developmental programmes. All the elected Area Sabha representatives in a Ward constitute Ward Committees making them accountable to the area Sabhas. The ward committee monitors all the developmental activities in the ward.

What will Area Sabhas do?
Area Sabha provide the citizens a platform to participate legitimately in the governance system. It ensures participatory democracy so that citizens, the sovereigns of the country, can finally demand what is rightfully ours, instead of begging, bribing and beseeching the authorities for our rights.

Constitution of Area Sabhas has many advantages. They will create a group of people espouse in informed citizen assertion for the basic services. Areas Sabhas will also act as institutionalized framework for collaborative work between the corporator and the community leaders.

The Area Sabha will act as a watchdog, monitoring the activities (see functions of Area Sabha (link to function of Area Sabha)) of the Municipal Corporation. An Area Sabha representative who does not perform can be recalled thus ensuring regular and good services.

Benefits of Area Sabhas

1. Permanent, institutionalized structure for urban citizen’s participation
2. Ward Committee strengthened, with accountability to Area Sabha.
3. Urban “Voter” elevated to “Citizen” in fullest sense.
4. Participatory/Deliberative democracy
5. Convergence opportunities: Voter List, BPL list cleaned up.
6. Heterogeneous composition has positive social implications.
7. Area Sabha a platform of citizen accountability.
8. Positive outcomes for the poor.
9. Opportunity to voice and address the concerns of marginalized sections.