Parliament today approved a crucial amendment to the Constitution which will insulate about 600,000 cooperative societies from political and government interference. The amendment to the Constitution would also grant citizens a Fundamental Right to form cooperative societies. The Bill was passed by the Rajya Sabha today through a division, since it related to amendment of the Constitution, without any difficulty. The UPA does not enjoy a majority in the Upper House.
The Lok Sabha has already approved the Bill. "In many cases, these cooperatives are heavily dependent on financial support from the government, which has led to intervention in their day-to-day functioning. "There are instances of avoidable political interference in working of these cooperative institutions," Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar said while moving the motion.
Replying to the debate, the Minister said, "The cooperative movement should go through the policy of democracy. There is need for improvement in running them, stop interference, have clean management and run them professionally."
Pawar, who himself is associated with the cooperative movement, said, "There are political interests and people like us take interest in it and harm them.
There is a need to check such a practice." He cited examples how there were deposits in benami accounts in cooperative banks even in the names of Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi and Sachin Tendulkar. "Someone can misuse their names like that. If we do not curb such malpractices, poor people will have to pay the price for the wrongdoings in such cooperatives," he said.
