MOHALI: The municipal corporation house meeting here on Tuesday was a noisy affair with the Congress and Azad group councillors coming face to face, bypassing the mayor during the question hour. By doing this, they violated the protocol and decorum of the house.
The Congress councillors started answering the questions of the Opposition that were posed to the mayor. Mayor Amarjit Singh, alias Jeeti Sidhu, the senior deputy mayor and the deputy mayor sat as mute spectators. Azad group councillors alleged the Congress leaders had come prepared to counter opposition in the cattle shed issue of allotting land to the dairy owners for shifting the animals to a designated place on the lines of Milk Colony in Chandigarh.
Congress councillors showed photographs of stray cattle seen on roads when the opposition councillors started questioning the agenda point. Opposition councillors Gurmeet Kaur, joined by Aruna Sharma, Ramanpreet Kaur from Kumbran and Harjinder Kaur from Sohana, raised objections over renting out sheds to dairy owners to set up cattle rearing units. Ramanpreet Kaur said, “We are not opposing the agenda for shifting the cattle out of the city, but the charging of rent from the dairy owners. The Congress mayor did not listen to our demand and instead, through his councillors, deviated the issue to the cattle pound. We fear small dairy owners will not be able to pay rent of Rs 10,000 to Rs 15,000 per month, but the Congress councillors snubbed us.”
After the meeting, the mayor said, “We will take care that the opposition and the ruling party councillors do not create ruckus in the house, but address the chair in future.”
Elderly councillor says insulted by mayor
Senior Azad group councillor Gurmeer Kaur alleged that she was insulted by the mayor, who asked her to “stay home at this age instead of fighting in the house”. The mayor allegedly made the remark when the Azad group councillor came up to the bench to register her resentment over the cattle shed issue. Instead of listening to her, she alleged, the mayor said, “You must stay home at this age instead of speaking on the issues in MC house.” She said she felt insulted, and the mayor must be neutral and listen to all members of the house. However, the mayor said, “We have never slighted any councillor and have always taken them along irrespective of their political party.”
