Which Part of the Constitution has the provisions for Panchayati Raj System?
2018
Which Part of the Constitution has the provisions for Panchayati Raj System?
- A.
IX
- B.
VI
- C.
III
- D.
IV
Attempted by 4 students.
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Correct answer: A
The Constitution organises its provisions into distinct Parts, each governing one domain of the polity; entrenching a subject constitutionally as a complete, enforceable institutional framework (rather than as a mere aspirational directive) requires inserting a dedicated Part through a constitutional amendment.
The 73rd Constitutional Amendment Act, 1992 inserted Part IX, titled "The Panchayats", comprising Articles 243 to 243-O along with the Eleventh Schedule. This Part establishes the Gram Sabha, the three-tier Panchayati Raj structure, reservation of seats, and the State Election Commission for panchayat elections — the complete, enforceable constitutional basis for rural local self-government. Hence the provisions FOR the Panchayati Raj system, as a system, are housed in Part IX.
This is confirmed by the neighbouring Part IX-A, "The Municipalities", inserted by the 74th Amendment, 1992 for urban local bodies — a parallel structure that leaves no doubt Part IX itself is reserved for rural Panchayati Raj. Checking the other offered Parts:
Part VI governs the States — their Executive, Legislature, and High Courts — and has no bearing on local government.
Part III lays down the Fundamental Rights guaranteed to citizens, unrelated to the local-government framework.
Part IV contains the Directive Principles of State Policy; Article 40 there only directs the State to organise village panchayats as a non-justiciable guideline — it is Part IX, not Part IV, that turned this directive into the actual enforceable institutional system.