Cong, JJP councillors create ruckus at Panchkula MC House meet
Sanjay Bumbroo
Tribune News Service
Panchkula, November 12
A ruckus was witnessed during a House meeting of the Municipal Corporation held today as councillors of the Congress and the Jannayak Janata Party (JJP) argued as well as scuffled with BJP councillors, besides tearing the copies of the agenda.
As soon as the meeting started, Congress councillor Salim Khan did not allow the discussion to be held on the agenda. All Congress councillors got up and started shouting in front of Mayor Kulbhushan Goyal, Haryana Assembly Speaker and local MLA Gian Chand Gupta, and MP Ratanlal Kataria, who was presiding over the meeting.
Salim said he was not asked with regard to the agenda. Jannayak Janata Party councillor Sushil Kumar Garg started arguing with Deputy Municipal Commissioner Deepak Sura over the paid parking system introduced in Sector 20.
When Congress councillors Pankaj Kumar, Usha Rani, Sandeep Sohi, Salim Khan and Sushil Garg did not move away and continued to create a ruckus, BJP councillors got up and asked the Opposition councillors to allow the meeting to continue.
Meanwhile, there was a scuffle as well as a fierce debate among the councillors of both sides. Seeing the deteriorating atmosphere, the Mayor called off the meeting after passing all 27 agenda items presented in the House.
Goyal said the attitude of the Congress councillors at today’s meeting was very condemnable as they had crossed the limit. They misbehaved with women councillors and municipal officials. Congress coucillors are trying to obstruct the ongoing development works in the city by disrupting the meeting.
Councillors Rakesh Valmiki and Sonu Birla objected to the sector-wise proposed rent imposed on street vendors in the city. The MC then passed a resolution of charging Rs 3,000 and Rs 5,000 as rent from non-motorised and motorised rehris, respectively, besides giving permission only to 10 rehris in each sector.
Sector 15 councillor Jai Kaushik raised the issue of floating an additional tender for the construction of a community centre in Sector 15, after which a proposal of setting up a separate tender of Rs 2.15 crore was passed by the House. Similarly, for the development of a street market in Sector 19, permission was given to increase the expenditure from Rs 1.40 crore to Rs 1.85 crore.
In Ward No. 16, a proposal of Rs 2.35 crore was passed for the construction of a road from the upper outpost to the lower outpost. The Mayor said the corporation fee for Kisan Mandis held in sectors had also been increased from Rs 30-50 per phari to Rs 100 per phari. He said the corporation had also decided to set up a gaushala and Bharat Mata Mandir on 6-8 acre land in Kot village to rid the city of stray cattle menace.
Key proposals passed at meeting
- Councillors’ allowances increased from Rs10,000 to Rs15,000
- To get Rs500 for attending MC meeting
- Rs3,000, Rs5,000 to be charged as rent from non-motorised, motorised rehris, respectively.
- Corporation fee for Kisan Mandis held in sectors up from Rs30-50 per phari to Rs100 per phari
