Cuttack: After walking out of the Cuttack Municipal Corporation (CMC) council meeting on Monday, alleging nepotism and corruption, BJP and Congress corporators staged a nightlong protest in from of the civic body office.
While the Congress corporators had created a ruckus over the name of Cuttack-Barabati MLA Mohammad Moquim not being mentioned on foundation stone plaques of recently laid welfare projects, those from BJP joined them and raised voice against partisan and corrupt practices of the CMC Mayor and Commissioner while demanding audit report of Bali Jatra income and expenditure.
Opposing the ‘officer raj’ in the civic body, the corporators, both men and women, held a night-long hunger protest demanding due respect and invitation to Moquim. “This does not augur well for a healthy democracy. The CMC commissioner should have come to the site and held discussions with them. The Cuttack denizens will not tolerate such arrogance and no political leader with self-respect will entertain it,” the Congress MLA said.
The protest will continue till a decisive conclusion is reached and all cooperation is being extended to the corporators, he added.
The corporators are also demanding the transfer of CMC chief executive engineer DR Tripathy, the cancellation of bills passed in the absence of opposition and an apology for Md Moquim.
While dismissing the allegations that the plaques did not have the name of the local MLA, Mayor Subash Singh said that he had personally invited Moquim. “The city residents want the council meetings to be conducted and their views to be presented and development works to take place. Instead of that, the corporators are protesting over the non-invitation of one person.”
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