New Delhi: Want to become an MP or MLA? The basic eligibility rules are fairly straightforward. A person must meet the required age, be an Indian citizen and satisfy other legal conditions. Contesting a panchayat election can involve several additional requirements, depending on the state.
Himachal Pradesh has now added another condition for panchayat elections. Under the new rule, if a member of a family has illegally occupied government land, the person’s daughter-in-law will also be barred from contesting a panchayat election. Indian law sets minimum age requirements for different elections. A candidate must also be an Indian citizen and cannot hold certain government offices that could make them ineligible. The law also has provisions relating to mental incapacity and other grounds for disqualification. The Constitution sets the basic rules for local self-government, but states make laws governing their panchayats. This gives state governments room to prescribe additional eligibility conditions for candidates. Their elections are conducted under state laws, which is why the eligibility rules for candidates can differ across the country.
A person must be at least 25 years old to contest a Lok Sabha or state assembly election. The minimum age required to contest a Rajya Sabha election is 30 years. A person must be 35 to contest the election for the president or the vice-president. A report presented by the Ministry of Panchayati Raj in November 2023 listed several states with education-related conditions for panchayat candidates. Rajasthan became the first state to introduce the policy in 1992. The state later removed the condition in 2019. Haryana and Andhra Pradesh introduced similar rules in 1994.
Nine states have such a two-child policy for panchayat elections, according to the Ministry of Panchayati Raj report.
Since then, panchayats have become an established part of India’s three-tier system of local government, covering village, intermediate and district levels.
