The Opposition councillors of the Kochi Corporation have decided to carry out strong protest measures if the Standing Committees fail to look into the corruption charges against the Town Planning Committee.
Graft charges were raised against the Town Planning Committee with regard to granting permission in displaying advertisements on lamp posts in the city.
It was at the last council meeting that the Mayor asked the Finance Standing Committee and Steering Committee to look into the allegations raised by the Opposition regarding the non-renewal of agreement for the display of advertisements on lamp posts.
The Opposition is also planning to file a Vigilance petition in this regard requesting an inquiry into the issue. “Though the Mayor has promised that he will look into the issue before the next council meeting, so far no steps have been taken to initiate an inquiry. The next meeting is scheduled for October 4. If stringent actions are not taken against the officials, we will launch strong protest measures,” said Opposition councillor C A Shakeer who raised the issue in the Council.
Shakeer added that the tenure with the agency which had the permit to display advertisements on lamp posts had ended in March 2011.
“Though the permit has not been renewed after that, the agency is still collecting charges from various firms. They have not paid a single penny to the Corporation for the last one year. This amount will come to the tune of `60 lakh,” Shakeer said. Meanwhile, Opposition leader K J Jacob said they were planning to file a Vigilance case demanding an inquiry into the issue. “The misappropriations have led to a revenue loss of `60 lakh, which is a huge amount as far as the Corporation is concerned. The civic body is already reeling under acute financial crunch and we are sure that the vested interests of certain officials are behind the irregularity,” Jacob said.
He alleged that they will demand a Vigilance inquiry into the issue on the next council meeting. “We will not cooperate with the meeting unless a clear decision is taken on this issue,” he added. Meanwhile, Mayor Tony Chammany reiterated that a neutral and unbiased committee is looking into the issue and if irregularities are found, strong actions will be taken against the officials concerned.
He added that no activities which will affect the revenue of the Corporation will be permitted.
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