3 days ago
Tender row at key F&CC meeting lay bare rift between office-bearers
Ludhiana: The Finance and Contracts Committee (F&CC) meeting scheduled for Friday could not be convened as senior deputy mayor Rakesh Prashar and deputy mayor Prince Johar boycotted the session at the mayor camp office, sources said.
The matter has been escalated to the party high command.
Over 400 resolutions aimed at the city's development were to be discussed at the meeting. However, disagreements between the mayor, senior deputy mayor, and deputy mayor put a spanner in the works.
A few days ago, senior deputy mayor Prashar expressed concern about allotment of tenders by the MC for beautification of parks in Focal Point at an approximate cost of Rs 10 crore.
He alleged that MC officials had flouted norms by awarding tenders using the e-mail ID of a retired executive engineer. However, officials said that they had permission from the XEN to use his ID.
When mayor Inderjit Kaur called Prashar to attend the meeting, he initially insisted that clarification be sought from officials. The mayor then requested his attendance to discuss the issue with MC commissioner Aaditya Dachalwal.
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Upon the mayor's arrival, he inquired about cancellation of the tenders. She replied that they would hold the meeting before addressing the matter. When deputy mayor Prince Johar arrived, Prashar refused to enter the meeting venue till the issue was addressed.
This prompted the mayor to tell him to do as he wished. Thereafter, both Prashar and Johar left the meeting venue.
Sources said that the deputy mayor was also agitated by recent employee transfers without his approval.
After their departure, the mayor attempted to approach them with the assistance of MLAs, but they remained adamant. MLAs are now expected to intervene, and a meeting has been scheduled to resolve the issue.
When contacted, senior deputy mayor Rakesh Prashar said, "Officials should clarify why they opened the tenders from the ID of a retired XEN and why they gave away tenders with less savings for the department. Many tenders are given away in this manner. When we are not given answers to previous queries then what is the point in approving more resolutions?"
Meanwhile mayor Inderjit Kaur denied boycott of the meeting by the deputy mayor and senior deputy mayor. "Both had some personal engagements, so they could not attend the meeting. We will fix the meeting again next week," she said.
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