KOCHI: The signage deal is taking a curious turn, with the official, whom the civic administration has held responsible for the fiasco, seeking an opportunity to explain her position to the corporation council.
“I will write to Mayor Soumini Jain asking for an opportunity to present my case before the council,” A.S. Anuja, Additional Secretary, Kochi Corporation, told The Hindu .
Justifying her decision to go in for a vigilance probe into the signage scam, Ms. Jain had told reporters that the official had illegally communicated the decisions of the town planning standing committee on the deal to the company in question before the council considered it. The company had also violated several conditions in the contract causing loss to the local body. All angles in the deal need to be probed, she had said.
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However, defending her position, Ms. Anuja said she was wrongly implicated in the case for following official instructions.
“I had acted on the oral instructions of then Corporation Secretary, who was out of town during the period, and issued the orders. The Secretary also directed me to collect the fee, which was due to the corporation from the company. I was wrongly implicated for following the instructions of my superior officer,” she said.
The Secretary, Ms. Anuja said, had instructed her to collect the fee due to the corporation to avoid any financial loss to the local body and to prevent him from being held liable for causing loss. The instructions of the Secretary could be found in the files, she added.
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The official said she was shown in poor light for following official instructions and enforcing the conditions in the contract between the local body and the company. She also denied the charge that she had extended the contract for putting up signage after levying free from the company without waiting for the decision of the council.