Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Rajya Sabha MP Raghav Chadha on Thursday raised concerns over the practice of "sarpanch pati" or "panchayat pati," where women elected to reserved Panchayat seats often serve as figureheads while real power is exercised by their male relatives. He urged the government to ensure that women representatives in local bodies can exercise genuine authority as intended under the 73rd Constitutional Amendment.

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"How many of you have heard the terms "sarpanch pati" or "panchayat pati"? In many places, a Panchayat seat reserved for women ends up being contested by the wife, daughter, sister or daughter-in-law of a male politician, while real authority continues to be exercised by him. This is why these terms have become so common. The 73rd Constitutional Amendment mandated 33% reservation for women in Panchayati Raj institutions so that women's voices are part of local governance. Out of roughly 31 lakh elected Panchayat representatives, about one third are women," Chadha wrote in a post on X. How many of you have heard the terms “sarpanch pati” or “panchayat pati” ? In many places, a Panchayat seat reserved for women ends up being contested by the wife, daughter, sister or daughter in law of a male politician , while real authority continues to be exercised by him.… pic.twitter.com/t23MTbnC2E — Raghav Chadha (@raghav_chadha) March 19, 2026

He further added, "But when an elected woman representative is only the face while authority is exercised by a male relative, it creates a parallel unelected authority. A form of proxy governance the Constitution never intended. This is exactly why I raised the issue through a supplementary question in Parliament last week. Does the government acknowledge that this practice exists? And what steps are being taken to ensure that women elected to Panchayats exercise real authority, not merely hold the seat in name?"

Chadha on Minimum Balance Penalties

A day earlier, Chadha urged the government to end minimum balance penalties being charged by some banks, stating that they have collected a staggering Rs 19,000 crore in the last three years from customers for not maintaining a minimum account balance. Participating in the debate on the Appropriation Bill, the AAP leader termed it "legalised pickpocketing."

"Rs 19,000 crore. That is what Banks collected in the last three years just for not maintaining a 'Minimum Account Balance.' This is not from the rich. Not from big borrowers. From the poorest accounts in the system. Their crime? They didn't have enough money. A farmer misses the minimum balance penalty. A pensioner withdraws money for medicine - Penalty. A daily wage worker falls short by a few hundred rupees - Penalty," he said.

"The poor keep money in banks for safety. Not to be quietly fined for being poor. Financial inclusion should protect small savings, not punish small balances," Chadha added. (ANI)