The special council meeting of Thrissur Corporation council on Wednesday witnessed tense moments as the Opposition members, comprising the Congress and the BJP councillors, gheraoed Mayor M.K. Varghese.
The council meeting was convened to discuss the controversial new master plan for city development. The Opposition demanded dropping the master plan, which was approved by the government.
“The master plan, which was not approved by the Corporation council, cannot be implemented,” said Opposition leader Rajan Pallan.
The Opposition alleged that former Mayor Ajitha Vijayan and the Corporation secretary submitted the plan to the government without the knowledge of the council. “They were cheating the people. We can’t allow it,” Mr. Pallan said.
When the Opposition leader was denied permission to speak in the meeting, the Congress members ran to the well of the council and gheraoed Mr. Varghese. The BJP members too soon joined them.
Mock salute
Tense moments prevailed when the LDF councillors reached the well in support of the Mayor even as some of the Opposition members mockingly saluted the Mayor. Recently, Mr. Varghese’s complaint to the DGP that the police personnel on duty were not saluting him was in the news.
The Mayor promised the Opposition members to rectify the shortcomings in the master plan, if any. “The plan, which has been pending for 47 years, has been given the approval by the government now,” the Mayor said.
However, the Opposition maintained that the master plan was “anti-people”. Mr. Pallan alleged that LDF leaders, including former Minister A.C. Moideen, pressured the chief town planner to give it the green signal. Even the then Thrissur MLA and former Minister V.S Sunil Kumar was not involved in the discussion, he said.
Though Mr. Pallan asked the Mayor for a vote on demand to cancel the master plan, the latter dismissed the meeting without further discussion.
However, standing committee chairman Varghese Kandamkulathy insisted that the Corporation would implement the plan at any cost. He challenged the Opposition members to move court if they had any complaint. “It’s a master plan to save Thrissur,” he said.