4 days ago
Akhilesh fuelling caste tensions, SP's PDA formula ‘fake': Rajbhar
State panchayati raj minister Om Prakash Rajbhar on Saturday launched a scathing attack on Samajwadi Party (SP) chief Akhilesh Yadav by calling his PDA (Pichhda, Dalit, Alpsankhyak) formula 'fake' and challenging him to declare a Muslim as his party's chief ministerial candidate if it was genuine. Panchayati Raj minister OP Rajbhar (File)
Rajbhar also accused the SP of fueling caste tensions, citing the Brahmin-Yadav conflict in Etawah and questioning Yadav's outreach to Brahmins in Azamgarh. 'Akhilesh talks about videos, but why did he organise religious rituals for Brahmins? His words and actions don't match,' he said, adding that the SP was lagging far behind in the 2027 political race. 'The Yogi government will return to power,' he asserted.
On the sensitive issue of panchayat poll reservations, Rajbhar said the existing policy must be implemented in full. 'Some villages saw changes due to election-related adjustments, but the issues will be corrected. Panchayat delimitation will be carried out afresh, and reservations will be enforced as per the established rules,' he said.
A day earlier, Rajbhar met chief minister Yogi Adityanath and renewed his long-standing demand for sub-categorisation within the OBC and Scheduled Caste reservation quotas ahead of the upcoming three-tier panchayat elections in the state.
Gram Chaupals soon
Earlier, Rajbhar chaired a departmental review meeting wherein he said Gram Chaupals would soon be held across villages to address local grievances on the spot. He stressed that sanitation workers would be mandatorily present in villages, and Aadhaar-based attendance would be enforced for both sanitation workers and panchayat assistants. 'Negligence will not be tolerated. Action will be taken against anyone found lax in their duties,' he said.
The minister directed officials to ensure gram panchayat buildings remain open and functional, promote cleanliness, maintain transparency, and enforce financial discipline.
He stressed uniform upkeep of panchayat premises, regular monitoring and payment for community toilet operations, timely digital financial reporting via the SPARSH portal, and stronger public engagement.
Emphasising environmental sustainability, he called for intensified plantation drives, awareness on plastic waste management, and promotion of Gobardhan and Kanha Gaushala schemes for biogas and compost production, with income transparently used for village development.
