Madhya Pradesh woman sarpanch 'leases out' entire panchayat to repay Rs 20 lakh loan

Loan

A woman sarpanch from Guna district in Madhya Pradesh allegedly leased out her village panchayat to someone in exchange for repaying her personal loan of Rs 20 lakh. The incident took place in Karod panchayat, located on the outskirts of Guna, around 220 km from Bhopal, The Times of India reported.

According to the officials, the deal was made in 2022. Sarpanch Laxmi Bai allegedly entered into a notarised agreement with a local resident, Ranveer Singh Kushwaha. In return for repaying her loan, he was allowed to take charge of the panchayat’s development works. Ranveer later transferred control to another person through a similar notarised affidavit.

Following an investigation by the Guna subdivisional magistrate, district panchayat officials lodged a police complaint. Police filed an FIR against Ranveer Singh Kushwaha, a resident of the area who allegedly took over the panchayat after assuring to repay the sarpanch's alleged loan and then handed it over to a third person. Sarpanch Laxmi Bai was officially dismissed from her post on May 9, the report said.

Guna district panchayat CEO Abhishek Dubey said that both the sarpanch and those involved in the deal are under scrutiny. The FIR, accessed by TOI, mentions that the agreement between Laxmi Bai and Ranveer was made on Rs 100 stamp paper and duly notarised.

According to the report, there are allegations that Laxmi Bai had taken the loan to fund her campaign during the 2022 panchayat elections, although this detail is not mentioned in the FIR.

Speaking to TOI, Laxmi Bai’s husband, Shankar Singh, denied the allegations. “We have not taken any money from anyone. But yes, Laxmi Bai has now been removed from her position,” he said.