Hyderabad, June 04: The special meeting of the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) for constituting ward committees for 150 Divisions was marred by protests from Telugu Desam corporators. Even after the meeting was over, trouble brewed for sometime with angry exchanges between Secunderabad MLA Jayasudha and Mayor Banda Karthika Reddy’s husband Chandra Reddy on the way the selection of ward committee members took place.
The meeting was interrupted constantly by TDP and BJP corporators, forcing the Mayor to suspend one of the TDP corporator for the unruly behavior in the House.
But the suspension was lifted later after the corporator Sama Ramanna Reddy apologised.
The meeting began on a stormy note as the TDP, BJP and MBT corporators alleged that Congress-MIM combine have sold away ward committee member seats which is undemocratic.
“The candidates nominated by Congress corporators are either Congress workers or followers of MLAs and MPs.
The nomination of candidates was done in an undemocratic manner. No genuine person was nominated from civil societies,’’ GHMC TDP Floor Leader Singi Reddy Srinivas Reddy said.
The TDP corporators said that the Congress party had turned GHMC Office into Gandhi Bhavan.
TDP and BJP corporators interrupted the proceedings and raised slogans against the Congress and the Mayor.
One of the TDP corporator was suspended and forcibly lifted from the council hall by marshals after he threw papers to the podium. Perhaps, this is the first time in the history of the corporation services of Marshals were used by the GHMC.
GHMC is probably the first local body in country to have ward committees that allows citizens to participate in planning and development process of the city. Under Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) it is mandatory to have ward committees for tapping JNNURM funds.
Later, speaking to reporters, Mayor Kartika Reddy claimed that the nominations for members of ward committees for 150 wards of the GHMC was conducted smoothly and in transparent manner and the allegations of the TDP are baseless. She said that the GHMC has become first corporation in the country to have ward committees. The constitution of ward committees was done with the sole intention of decentralising powers to the local people for taking developmental works depending upon their needs and priority locally.
Elections to the ward committee members was the dream of late Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi who was instrumental to the 74th amendment of the Constitution to accord powers to locals, she added.
——–Agencies