Panchayati Raj and the 73rd Constitutional Amendment

The Constitution (Seventy-third Amendment) Act, 1992 inserted Part IX (Articles 243 to 243O) and the Eleventh Schedule into the Constitution and came into force on 24 April 1993. It turned panchayats from bodies that existed at the pleasure of State governments into a constitutional tier of self-government, with a Gram Sabha, three levels of panchayats, fixed five-year terms, reserved seats, a State Finance Commission and an independent State Election Commission. In Tamil Nadu, these guarantees are carried into practice by the Tamil Nadu Panchayats Act, 1994 (Tamil Nadu Act 21 of 1994).

This explainer is for B.A. LL.B. and LL.B. students preparing constitutional law and local government papers, and for citizens in places like Agastheeswaram or Thovalai who want to know what their panchayat can and cannot do. Part IX is short, but examiners expect you to know it article by article and to connect it with recent judgments.

What does Part IX actually require?

Read the articles in this order and you will have the structure of most answers:

• Article 243A: the Gram Sabha, made up of voters of the village, exercises the powers that State law gives it at the village level.
• Article 243B: panchayats at village, intermediate and district levels. A State with a population not above twenty lakh may skip the intermediate level.
• Article 243C: seats are filled by direct election from territorial constituencies. Chairpersons at intermediate and district levels are elected from among the elected members.
• Article 243D: seats for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in proportion to population, not less than one-third of seats for women, reservation of chairperson posts, and an enabling power for backward class reservation.
• Article 243E: a five-year term from the first meeting. If a panchayat is dissolved early, elections must be completed within six months of dissolution.
• Article 243F: disqualifications, including those that apply to State legislature elections, with a minimum age of 21.
• Articles 243G and 243H: State law may give panchayats powers and functions, including the 29 matters in the Eleventh Schedule, and may let them levy taxes, duties, tolls and fees.
• Article 243I: a State Finance Commission, first within one year and then every fifth year, to review panchayat finances.
• Article 243K: a State Election Commissioner appointed by the Governor, removable only like a High Court Judge.
• Article 243M: Part IX does not apply to Scheduled Areas and tribal areas under Article 244 and certain States and hill areas, unless Parliament extends it.
• Article 243O: courts cannot question delimitation laws, and a panchayat election can be challenged only by an election petition under State law.

Notice the pattern. Some clauses are mandatory ("shall"), such as the five-year term and reservation for women. Others, such as devolution under Article 243G, are left to the State legislature ("may"). That distinction is the heart of most critical essays on Panchayati Raj.

How does Tamil Nadu give effect to it?

The Tamil Nadu Panchayats Act, 1994 creates the three tiers: village panchayats, panchayat union councils and district panchayats. A few provisions every student should know:

• Section 3: the Grama Sabha consists of persons on the electoral roll of the panchayat village. It must meet at least twice a year, with no more than six months between meetings. It approves the village plan, the village budget and the audit report, and reviews schemes. The Village Panchayat must give "due consideration" to its recommendations.
• Women's reservation: the Act originally followed the one-third floor. A 2016 amendment, introduced as L.A. Bill No. 5 of 2016, replaced "one-third" with "fifty per cent" in Sections 11, 20, 32 and 57, covering seats and offices in village panchayats, panchayat union councils and district panchayats.
• Special Officers: when elected bodies are not in place, the State has used Special Officers. Section 261-A has been amended repeatedly for this purpose.

That last point matters in 2026. According to L.A. Bill No. 19 of 2026, the terms of elected rural bodies in 28 districts expired on 5 January 2025, and Special Officers have run them since, with elections delayed because ward delimitation and reservation were not complete. The bill amended Section 261-A to extend their term from 5 July 2026 to 19 October 2026. Then G.O. (Ms) No. 166 of the Rural Development and Panchayat Raj Department, dated 19 October 2026, extended it again to 19 April 2027, according to a South First report of 21 October 2026. The order cites undertakings given in Writ Petition No. 39526 of 2024 that elections will follow reorganisation, delimitation and reservation. Check the current Gazette before writing about the exact position, because it has changed several times.

How have the courts read Part IX?

Kishansing Tomar v. Municipal Corporation of Ahmedabad (2006)

Decided on 19 October 2006 under Article 243U (the municipal twin of Article 243E), this ruling held that the five-year term is mandatory and that the State Election Commission must complete elections before the term ends. The State government must give the Commission full cooperation, and the Commission may seek a writ of mandamus if it does not.

K. Krishna Murthy v. Union of India, (2010) 7 SCC 202

A Constitution Bench upheld Articles 243D(6) and 243T(6) as enabling provisions for backward class reservation in local bodies. It said the identification of backwardness for political representation needs its own inquiry, and that the reservation must be reviewed.

Vikas Kishanrao Gawali v. State of Maharashtra (4 March 2021)

A three-judge Bench laid down the "triple test" for OBC reservation in local bodies: a dedicated commission conducting a contemporaneous empirical inquiry, a local body wise proportion fixed on its findings, and an aggregate ceiling of 50 per cent for SC, ST and OBC seats together.

Suresh Mahajan v. State of Madhya Pradesh (10 May 2022)

In this order (2022 LiveLaw (SC) 463), the Supreme Court called the constitutional mandate to install a new body before the old one's five-year term ends "inviolable". It said ongoing delimitation or ward formation cannot be a legitimate ground to delay the election programme, and that where the triple test is not complete, seats other than those reserved for SC and ST must be notified as General Category seats. The Court extended its directions to all States and Union Territories. Note that it was framed as an interim order, so check later proceedings before citing it as the final word.

A worked example

Suppose a village panchayat's term ends on 31 March and the State says it will hold elections "after delimitation is completed". Start with Article 243E(3)(a): the election must be completed before the term expires. Then apply Suresh Mahajan: pending delimitation is not a valid reason for delay. If OBC seats are the stated reason, the same order says the remaining seats go to polls as General Category seats. A voter or candidate who wants to force the issue would usually seek a writ directing the State Election Commission to hold the poll, relying on Kishansing Tomar. A challenge to the result after the poll is a different matter: under Article 243O, that goes by election petition, not writ.

What is the current position?

The constitutional text has not changed: five-year terms, elections within six months of dissolution, and an independent State Election Commission. Read with Suresh Mahajan, the law leans strongly against long gaps without elected panchayats. In Tamil Nadu, the State has relied on statutory amendments and orders appointing Special Officers while it completes reorganisation, delimitation and reservation. Whether that course can be squared with Article 243E is a fair question for a seminar paper, and you can frame it as exactly that.

How should you write about it in an exam?

1. Open with one line on the amendment: what it inserted and when it came into force.
2. Set out the mandatory features, citing article numbers, then the discretionary ones.
3. Add the State layer: name the Tamil Nadu Panchayats Act, 1994 and Section 3 on the Grama Sabha.
4. Bring in two or three cases with years: Kishansing Tomar on timing, Krishna Murthy and Gawali on reservation, Suresh Mahajan on delay.
5. Close with a short critique: devolution under Article 243G depends on State will, so funds, functions and functionaries often lag behind the text.

Constitutional law is a core paper in the law programmes, and Part IX questions reward precise article numbers more than long history.

Sources

• Tamil Nadu Rural Development and Panchayat Raj Department, Constitutional Provisions: text of Part IX, Articles 243 to 243O.
• Tamil Nadu Panchayats Act, 1994, Chapter II: Section 3 on the Grama Sabha.
• India Code, Tamil Nadu Panchayats Act, 1994 (Tamil Nadu Act 21 of 1994): Act record and rules made under it.
• Tamil Nadu Panchayats (Amendment) Bill, 2016 (L.A. Bill No. 5 of 2016): fifty per cent reservation for women in Sections 11, 20, 32 and 57.
• South First, 21 October 2026: report on G.O. (Ms) No. 166 extending Special Officers to 19 April 2027.
• Seventh State Finance Commission, Bihar: note on the 73rd Amendment with its date of implementation.
• Tamil Nadu Panchayats (Second Amendment) Bill, 2026: extension of Special Officers under Section 261-A, with reasons.
• Suresh Mahajan v. State of Madhya Pradesh (2022): full Supreme Court judgment.
• SCC Online report on Vikas Kishanrao Gawali (2021): summary of the triple test.