Gurdaspur village holds auction for sarpanch post, highest bid Rs 2 crore
Villagers of Hardowal Kalan, falling in the Vidhan Sabha seat of Fatehgarh Churian in Gurdaspur district, held an auction to elect their sarpanch. The bidding, which began at Rs 50 lakh, saw the highest offer reaching Rs 2 crore by former sarpanch and local BJP leader Atma Singh. This auction is seen as an attempt to bypass traditional democratic elections.
Atma Singh, whose father Wassan Singh also served as the village headman, made the Rs 2 crore offer through a cheque placed before the villagers. He justified the auction, stating: “This process is better than bribing local politicians to secure the position.”
The auction was set to continue, with villagers declaring that anyone who offers more than Rs 2 crore would be considered for the post of sarpanch.
This practice has drawn significant criticism from government officials and political figures alike. Many officials condemned the auction as a violation of democratic norms, stating that it undermines the purpose of panchayat elections. Leader of Opposition Partap Singh Bajwa strongly opposed the auction and called for a Vigilance probe, accusing the auctioneers of “murdering democracy”. He questioned the legitimacy of selling a public post based on financial contributions.
The village of Hardowal Kalan, one of the largest in Gurdaspur with 300 acres of panchayat land, has a history of unanimously electing its sarpanches for the past 30 years. However, this time, the Naujawan Sabha, a youth council formed after the dissolution of panchayats in Punjab, organised the auction. According to Atma Singh, the amount raised through this process would be directed toward the development of the village.
Despite the outcry, villagers seemed supportive of the auction, viewing it as a transparent method of leadership selection. The final outcome of the bidding will be determined when the auction resumes. Meanwhile, the situation has sparked a debate about the integrity of local governance and the role of money in influencing democratic processes in Punjab.
