Senior TMC leader Firhad Hakim on Friday resigned as the mayor of the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC), saying he was unable to function properly. Hakim said he stepped down from the post with his "head held high" after he obtained the consent of party supremo Mamata Banerjee.
One of the TMC's most prominent minority faces and a key pillar of the party's urban organisation, Hakim submitted his resignation amid continuing political turbulence within the TMC following its defeat in the West Bengal assembly elections.
In a pre-resignation press conference, Hakim reflected on his nearly seven-and-a-half-year tenure at the helm of the civic body and thanked KMC officials and the people of Kolkata for helping him steer the city through some of its most challenging periods.
"During my tenure as mayor, Kolkata faced several difficult situations, including cyclone Amphan and the COVID-19 pandemic. We successfully overcame these challenges with the support of KMC officials and the citizens of the city," he said.
Hakim said he had sought permission from Banerjee before deciding to demit office. "I wanted to leave with my head held high. I sought permission from my leader, and she granted it," he said.
Recalling his appointment as mayor in November 2018, Hakim said he had initially doubted whether he could live up to the legacy of some of the city's most distinguished former mayors.
"When I first became mayor, I was confident about working for the city, but I never thought I could become a worthy successor to stalwarts like Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose and Deshbandhu Chittaranjan Das, who once occupied this chair," he said.
Hakim submitted his resignation to the office of KMC Chairperson Mala Roy. His exit comes at a time when the TMC is grappling with organisational strains and a series of resignations by councillors in the Kolkata Municipal Corporation in the last few weeks, adding to uncertainty within the party's civic and political structure.
Hakim, also an MLA, had handled several key ministerial portfolios in the TMC governments over the years.
The KMC has been under Trinamool Congress control since 2010 and is regarded as one of the party's most important institutional power centres.
In the 150-year history of the civic body, the mayor's office has been occupied by several iconic figures of Bengal's political and nationalist movement, including Deshbandhu Chittaranjan Das, Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose and former West Bengal chief minister Bidhan Chandra Roy.
Hakim made history when he became the first Muslim mayor of Kolkata since Independence.
(With inputs from PTI)
