Affirmative action has enabled the representation of women in panchayats and enhanced their political status in local government. While they now possess authority through being incumbents of elective positions, this has not been translated into power (i.e. the ability to actually effect...

Various individuals, including party officials, elected representatives of panchayats, and sundry persons carry out functions designated as ‘fixing’. These activities are carried out by fixers for rural people, mainly in relation to government agencies and departments, which they would...

Karnataka’s panchayats have several groups which, in the past, did not find representation in political institutions. Now, through affirmative action, they do. In the context of representing people’s interests, representatives elected through open or reserved constituencies have not been...

Cultural and social exclusion from the political system resulted in women and other disadvantaged sections of population being alienated from politics and governance. The reservation of seats in local governance has offered women new political space and an opportunity to participate in...

Panchayats have provided the opportunity for the widest section of rural society to participate in local governance. Social conditions, however, ensure that only a section of the village people actually acquire and wield power. Political power, built through patronage, political experience, and...

We examine the decentralisation process in two south Indian states: Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu. These states have major role in the federal politics of the Indian polity. In this context this paper argues that there is an inverse relationship between strong federal demands and their relation...

Despite the political inclusion of Scheduled Tribe women in panchayats and the claims to equality of opportunity in political participation, the political marginalisation of Scheduled Tribe women continues. Political exclusion is a consequence of their exclusion at the macro and micro levels of...

Live performance of local government—including both political representatives and the bureaucracy. Conceptually there is little disagreement on the political and administrative dimensions of accountability, and their relation to the institutions of local government. Transparency and...

The Andhra Pradesh Panchayat Raj Act, 1994 has made a provision for constituting a Gram Sabha (GS) for every village. This forum enables the people to participate in all aspects of village development. A recent study of the working of GSs in AP state reveals that the GS has become defunct and...

The representation of women in the institutions of local government has been facilitated through affirmative action, where one-third of the seats have been reserved for women. This raises issues related to the representation of gender interests and the constraints on such representation. The...