CUTTACK: A war of words ensued between Barabati-Cuttack MLA Sofia Firdous and Cuttack mayor Subash Singh on Tuesday after the former conducted a review meeting along with other officials of the civic body without involving the latter.
Visibly upset over his exclusion from the review meeting, Singh came down heavily on Sofia while alleging before the media that she had no contribution towards Cuttack’s development. He even called Sofia an "accidental MLA."
“Sofia’s family has pushed Cuttack city to a devastating condition. The city once had over 1,860 ponds but now it has fewer than 150. Who buried them for interest of their own business? Has she ever laid a single brick in her life?” Singh asked while accusing Sofia of causing disturbance in the civic affairs of Cuttack.
On the other hand, Sofia stated before the media that the mayor had failed to take proper steps for the city’s development, and accused him of letting Cuttack ‘sink’ into administrative inefficiency.
“As an elected MLA, I have the right to conduct a review meeting to assess the situation in my constituency and that is what I did. Singh left the Ganesh Puja preparatory meeting midway and did not stay till the end despite being the mayor of the city. He neither understands the problems of the citizens nor tries to solve their issues,” she added.