Government Launches ‘Say No To Proxy Sarpanch’ Campaign:
The Ministry of Panchayati Raj (MoPR) has launched the ‘Say No To Proxy Sarpanch’ campaign. This campaign will to address the issue of the ‘Sarpanch Pati’ practice in village governance.
- This initiative was launched on International Women’s Day and it will run until March 18, 2026.
- This campaign will aims to raise awareness about situations where elected women sarpanches are sidelined and male relatives exercise authority on their behalf.
- The ‘Sarpanch Pati’ practice refers to that a situation where male relatives of elected women sarpanches take over decision making authority in local governance.
- In many villages women are elected as sarpanches due to reservation policies. But in practice their husbands or other male family members control official decisions.
- These men are commonly referred to as “Sarpanch Pati” “Pradhan Pati” or “Mukhiya Pati”
- The ‘Say No To Proxy Sarpanch’ campaign highlights this issue and encourages citizens to recognize and support authentic women leadership in Panchayati Raj institutions.
- One of the main key objective is to encourage communities to respect the authority of elected women leaders. And also to ensure they are able to perform their duties independently.
- This campaign also aims to identify and discourage proxy leadership practices in rural governance structures.
- Through public participation and social media engagement the campaign invites citizens to share their views about the Sarpanch Pati culture. And also highlight examples of genuine women leadership in villages.
