A wordy duel ensued between the ruling Congress and the Opposition – the CPI, the CPI (M) and the TDP — over naming of streets, during the Vijayawada Municipal Corporation (VMC) general body meeting on Wednesday.
The issue came up for discussion when the Congress suggested naming of a few streets and schools after former MP Parvataneni Upendra and some corporators. CPI floor leader D. Sankar, TDP floor leader Yerubothu Ramana, CPI (M) corporator D. Kasinath and others sought to know the stage of developmental works for which the names were suggested.
They insisted that Mayor M.V. Ratna Bindu direct the officials to speak on the status of works.
Former deputy mayor and Congress senior corporator Samathapudi Narasaraju took objection to their demands and apprehensions. “We intend to name a few streets or a school after the people, who strived for the development of the city. We never opposed such resolutions from Opposition corporators,” he said.
Mr. Narasaraju pointed out that there were instances in Vijayawada history of localities and streets being named after persons “who were not from India at all,” and also after the persons, who were still alive.
Upendra, who served as MP of Vijayawada, strived for the all round development of the city. Likewise, Mahadevu Rama Rao was a well known corporator, he said.
“It seems you are daydreaming that you would come to power in the next elections. And you are worried that no street would be left to name after a person of your choice,” he taunted the Opposition.
Later, the Opposition parties clarified that they were not worried about the naming of streets but only about the status of developmental works.
In a record of sorts, the general body meeting was wound up by the end of the day, after completing all the items on the agenda.
The general body meetings in the last five years always stretched to a minimum of two days.
Also, with the five-year-term of the general body of the Vijayawada Municipal Corporation all set to end in less than two months, Mayor M.V. Ratna Bindu and the corporators, along with Municipal Commissioner G. Ravi Babu, joined for a group photograph before the beginning of the deliberations. It was, however, not clear whether there would be at least one more sitting of the general body before the end of the term.
