The Jawabdehi Padyatra, a statewide march demanding government accountability, culminated in Jaipur on Constitution Day with over a thousand participants including workers, farmers and students pressing Chief Minister Bhajan Lal Sharma to enact an Accountability Act in Rajasthan.
Constitutional Rights Under Scrutiny
Addressing the gathering at Shaheed Smarak on Tuesday, prominent activist Aruna Roy emphasized that democracy fundamentally depends on constitutional rights. She stated that dignity and rights can only be protected when accountability is guaranteed, describing democracy as incomplete without proper accountability mechanisms.
The padyatra covered multiple districts over 15 days, revealing a consistent pattern where rights-based legislation remains largely unimplemented, offering minimal benefits to poor and marginalized communities.
Ground Reality: Laws Exist But Implementation Fails
Shankar Singh, who participated in the entire 15-day march, reported encountering the same distressing story in village after village. "People are stranded without any functional forum to address their grievances", he explained. "From water access to pension disbursement, from schools to healthcare facilities - citizens wander helplessly from door to door. The laws and schemes exist on paper, but nobody listens to implementation concerns."
Social activist Nikhil Dey highlighted several critical governance failures:
- Absence of functioning rules for gig workers
- Lack of minimum wage guarantees
- Failure to implement the Right to Health Act for over two years
Dey characterized these omissions as demonstrating serious political accountability deficits within the state administration.
Historical Context: Repeated Efforts, Limited Results
This isn't the first such initiative. The inaugural Accountability Padyatra conducted during 2015-16 documented more than 10,000 complaints, but subsequent follow-up investigations revealed that grievance resolution remained largely superficial.
Similar marches in 2021 and 2022 identified identical systemic problems without producing meaningful solutions. Current complaints span multiple critical areas:
- Employment and food security
- Pension distribution and silicosis compensation
- Drinking water access and agricultural issues
- Healthcare services and Anganwadi operations
- Flaws in Statewide Intensive Revision (SIR) process
- Pending cases on Rajasthan Sampark Portal
Broader Democratic Concerns
The campaign also demanded withdrawal of amendments introduced through the Digital Personal Data Protection Act (DPDPA), arguing they weaken Right to Information provisions and reduce government transparency.
Additionally, organizers called upon the Election Commission of India to conduct social audits of voter lists, correct erroneous entries, register new voters and enable citizen monitoring to safeguard universal suffrage.
PUCL national president Kavita Srivastava raised alarms about the ongoing Statewide Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls across 12 states including Rajasthan, which has exposed significant inaccuracies and opaque procedures. She reported names being deleted without notification, pending new registrations and unresolved complaints, warning that "faulty voter lists threaten democracy's foundations."
The gathering concluded with renewed demands for immediate enactment of comprehensive accountability legislation to ensure Rajasthan's marginalized populations can finally access their constitutionally guaranteed rights.
