JAIPUR: The Congress and other major political parties in the state excluding BJP will file a petition in the Supreme Court on Monday against an ordinance brought by the Rajasthan government setting a minimum education qualification for candidates contesting panchayat polls.
Congress along with JD(U), RLD, SP, NCP and CPM will jointly approach the SC for which discussions have been held. The consortium is likely to get support from other small political outfits and NGOs. A separate PIL has already been filed against the ordinance by social activist Aruna Roy. The SC will hear the case on January 5.
The ordinance stipulates a minimum education qualification of secondary education (Class X) for candidates contesting zila parishad or panchayat samiti polls and Class VIII pass to be eligible to run for the post of sarpanch.
Claiming the ordinance as discriminatory and against the constitutional right to equality and highly disruptive for all candidates and political parties, Pradesh Congress Committee president Sachin Pilot said that bringing ordinance in haste is against the spirit of Constitution. “Such issues need discourse and BJP should have placed a bill in the House. Instead they choose to bring in an ordinance,” said Pilot.
“To justify their unconstitutional move, they are going to the extent of professing uneducated as corrupt and insulting them,” he alleged.
The PCC chief also reiterated that this ordinance will make SC, ST candidates and rural women ineligible to contest the panchayat polls. He pointed out that there is anger among both political and non-political outfits.
TOI | Jan 5, 2015
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