Orissa High Court stays Mohan Majhi Govt's plan to restructure women self-help groups

The Hindu

22-04-2025

Orissa High Court has stayed implementation of certain sections of guidelines on restructuring of community institutions promoted under the aegis of Mission Shakti, a self-help mission for empowering women through promotion of women self-help groups (WSHGs).
Earlier this month, the Mohan Majhi Government had announced restructuring of community institutions stating that it would revamp institutions that have not undergone leadership changes for years, facilitating the introduction of democratic processes in governance. The restructuring aimed at initiating democratic leadership rotation.
Through this comprehensive restructuring process, 12,42,940 new office bearers at the SHG level and 11,58,000 executive committee members at the Cluster Level Forum (CLF) level would have assumed leadership positions.
Overall, more than 35 lakh women members across various institutional levels would have the opportunity to hold diverse leadership roles, empowering them to steer their institutions toward inclusive growth and socio-economic advancement. The State Government had decided that this leadership rotation would occur every three years, and no member would hold any office for more than two consecutive terms (Clause 5.10).
Another clause in the restructuring plan was that only one member from a family would be eligible to become the member of executive committee (Clause 5.11). Other family members, members of extended families or close relatives of such family would not be able to become member of EC of the same community institutions.
A single Judge Bench of Orissa High Court, Justice Sashikant Mishra, stayed the implementation of two clauses till next date of hearing.
On the face of it, the HC order may have offered relief to a specific petitioner affected by two contentious clauses. However, political analysts view it as a setback for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in its attempt to loosen the Biju Janata Dal's (BJD) long-standing hold over WSHGs functioning under Mission Shakti through a proposed restructuring plan.
Nearly 70 lakh women have been mobilised into six lakh WSHG federations across the State. 'These groups were key supporters of the BJD, which held power in Odisha for 24 consecutive years under former Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik. Most WSHG members were nurtured into leadership roles during the BJD regime. With the Panchayat elections approaching, the BJP cannot afford to rely on the current leadership within these groups. The restructuring would have allowed the ruling party to place its own women leaders in influential positions within the WSHGs,' a political commentator observed.
The next panchayat elections carry immense significance for the BJP, as they are seen as stepping stone towards the party's long-term goal of establishing a lasting political foothold in Odisha — much like the BJD had since 2000. In the 2024 elections, while a section of disgruntled members from WSHGs backed the saffron party, the majority of women were reportedly aligned with the BJD.