Odisha:Lady sarpanch disqualified for proving fake cerficate

Ganjam(Reporters Today Bureau): A lady sarpanch of Arjyapalli gram panchayat under Chhatrapur block of the Ganjam district, on Thursday,  was disqualified from the post for not knowing Odia and submitting a fake caste certificate while filing her nomination form.

The accused named M Laxmi was elected as the sarpanch of Aryapali gram panchayat under Chhatrapur block of the district held in the year 2017. She is unable to read or write Odia language.

A petition has been filed against Laxmi at the Civil Judge Senior Division Court in Chhatrapur.

After the hearing was over, lawyer, Manoj Kumar Padhy said, “Based on the statements of witnesses from each side, the Chhatrapur Civil Judge Senior Division disqualified the standing sarpanch Laxmi for not knowing Odia. The Court has also directed the District Collector to take further action in this regard,” Padhy added.

The petition has filed by her closest rival, who lost to Laxmi in the civil court challenging her dismissal citing the following reasons