Jharkhand/Ranchi: The contempt petition filed regarding the delay in implementing PESA rules was heard on Tuesday in the division bench of Jharkhand High Court Chief Justice Tarlok Singh Chauhan and Justice Rajesh Shankar. Panchayati Raj Secretary Manoj Kumar appeared on the court's order. He told the court that opinion has been sought from 17 departments, out of which reply has been received from seven departments. However, the opinion has not been received from the Law and Finance Department yet, whereas these are the most important. The secretary said that as soon as the opinion of both the departments is received, the proposal will be sent to the cabinet and the rules will be implemented as soon as approval is received.
The court asked the secretary why there is so much delay in the process despite the order. The secretary argued that meetings are being held continuously and the process is moving forward. On this, the court gave them time and fixed the next hearing on 23 September. It is noteworthy that in July 2024 itself, the High Court had ordered the government to prepare and implement the rules within two months. When this was not followed, the Adivasi Intellectual Forum had filed a contempt petition. Senior advocate Ajit Kumar presented his side on behalf of the petitioner and said that the PESA Act was made in 1996, but till now the Jharkhand government has not been able to make the rules.
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