THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: BJP councillors have complained to the corporation secretary against the mayor for rushing through the items on the agenda during the corporation council meeting held on Wednesday, without holding a proper discussion. The saffron party councillors will also approach the secretary, LSG department, on Thursday over alleged irregularities in the conduct of the corporation council meeting which was held after a gap of one month.
According to Thirumala councillor K Anil Kumar, only four members from BJP, which has 35 councillors, were allowed to attend the meeting, citing Covid protocol. While 13 councillors from the ruling LDF attended the meeting, three councillors from the UDF, which has a strength of 10 members, were also allowed. “We had requested that all members be allowed for the meeting to discuss important matters relating to Covid prevention. But our pleas fell on deaf ears. There was no discussion on crucial items on the agenda and the meeting turned out to be a farce,” he said.
Around 30 BJP councillors gathered outside the council hall as a mark of protest against their poor representation at the meeting. They also alleged that the ruling combine had decided to rush through the proceedings to prevent the saffron party from levelling charges of corruption in connection with Attukal pongala-related clean-up activities.
According to the BJP councillors, the corporation has proved to be a complete failure in Covid prevention. There was severe shortage of volunteers and ambulance service and councillors were forced to pay from own pockets in many instances, they said.
MAYOR BLAMES BJP COUNCILLORS
Mayor Arya Rajendran’s office said that BJP members thronged the council lounge with placards violating the consensus arrived at the all-party meeting that only 20 councillors will attend the meeting in person while the others will take part virtually. Despite pleas to maintain the Covid protocol and to shift to nearby rooms allotted to standing committees, the BJP councillors refused to budge, the Mayor’s Office said. Amid the pandemonium, the mayor deferred a few items on the agenda to the next council meeting, approved the rest and adjourned the meeting.
CASE AGAINST BJP COUNCILLORS FOR VIOLATING COVID PROTOCOL
T’Puram: The Museum police have registered cases against about 30 BJP councillors for violating Covid protocol. The cases were registered against the councillors after they allegedly assembled outside the council hall, the police said.As per the decision of the all-party meeting, the council meeting slated for Wednesday was to be physically attended by a minimum number of councillors, while the rest were to be present online, a corporation source said. The police said they had suo motu registered the case as the crowding of the BJP councillors took place outside the council hall.