AHMEDABAD: In a glaring instance of administrative negligence, the Gujarat State Election Commission is under fire after a 19-year-old girl was allegedly elected as Sarpanch in Gilosan village, Mehsana district, a clear violation of the minimum age requirement of 21 years.
The irregularity came to light not during the election process, but while preparing a list of young Sarpanches to be felicitated by the Chief Minister at an upcoming event in Gandhinagar, said a source.
During the verification of documents, officials from the district panchayat discovered a mismatch in the age of the newly elected Sarpanch, Afrozbanu Sipai. Her Aadhaar card shows a birth date of 8 December 2004, while her school leaving certificate mentions 7 January 2005, making her just 19 years and 8 months old, and therefore ineligible to contest.
Shockingly, this discrepancy allegedly went completely unnoticed during the election process. It was only when the school leaving certificate was requested for the felicitation ceremony that officials realised the violation.
The incident has triggered outrage and raised serious questions about the due diligence of election officials and returning officers responsible for verifying eligibility.
As the controversy escalated, Mehsana’s Provincial Officer Urvish Waland confirmed the breach. “The Taluka Development Officer has submitted a report stating that the elected Sarpanch of Gilosan Gram Panchayat is under 21 years of age. At the time of nomination, the candidate declared her age as 21, based on which the Returning Officer accepted her form and allowed the election to proceed. She was subsequently declared the winner,” said Waland.
“Only the age is to be mentioned in the nomination form, and the candidate had written that she had completed 21 years. We have now forwarded the entire report to the District Collector and also sent all relevant details to the State Election Commission. The final decision on the matter will be taken by the Commission,” he added.
Despite being underage, Parmar Afrozbanu has allegedly refused to step down. “Nowhere in the form was I asked to write my date of birth, only my age. So, I wrote 21,” she argued, defending her action.
The administration is now mulling over forcing her resignation as per rules, but the blunder has already exposed a gaping hole in the election vetting process. The incident has not only embarrassed the local administration ahead of the CM’s event but also put a spotlight on the systemic lapses allegedly plaguing grassroots electoral procedures.