A meeting of the city Corporation council convened on Friday ended in just 10 minutes, after the Opposition raised a hue and cry over the issue of ‘faulty and non-existent street lights.’
As the Opposition members walked to the centre of the hall, demanding the Mayor’s resignation for ‘misleading the council,’ the agenda for the day was passed without any discussion.
When the council meeting began, Opposition leader Johnson Joseph said the issue of street lights should be included on the agenda for the day, considering the urgency of having the streets lighted in time for the Karkkidaka Vavu and Ramzan. But this request was rejected, and the Opposition members rose up in protest.
Opposition councillor A. Mujeeb Rahman said contractors were not taking up the work as the civic body had not given the money to contractors for work already done or deposited money with the Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB) for the work to be done.
When Mayor K. Chandrika said all the cheques had been given, Mr. Rahman challenged her to place the records on the table. She responded that ‘anticipatory sanction’ had been given for the street light work. This led the Opposition councillors to demand her resignation on the charge of ‘misleading the council.’
After the proceedings ended amid the Opposition sloganeering, the Opposition councillors staged a sit-in in front of the Mayor’s chamber. The sit-in shifted to the Corporation office’s portico when the Mayor was about to leave in her car.
The councillors blocked her way, and she went back to the office.
Later, speaking to The Hindu , V.S. Padmakumar, chairperson of the Works standing committee, said since anticipatory sanction had been given for the works, the cheques were also handed over.
“The Opposition is trying to mislead everyone. A total of Rs.96 lakh has been deposited for the street light work. Only in five electrical sections — beach, Manacaud, Poonthura, Sreevarahom, and Thiruvallam — has the work been held up owing to expiry of the contract.”
