A day before Jalandhar MC meet, Mayor Jagdish Raja tries to 'placate' councillors

Jalandhar, June 7

Ahead of the General House meeting of the MC, scheduled to be held on Wednesday, a ‘pre meeting’ was held on Tuesday at the Mayor’s residence. Congress councillors were invited and it is reported that they raised several issues with the Mayor.

However, some said this meeting was nothing but a strategy to make the Congress councillors pointing out the flaws of ruling party and MC officials, rather than verbally attacking the Mayor in front of everyone during the House meeting.

Mayor Jagdish Raja had reportedly called them (councillors) to resolve the issues today itself in person so that the councillors don’t get united and shower questions on him tomorrow at the House meeting. Sources said that some tension was also visible among few councillors and they indulged in several arguments too.

Jagdish Samrai, one of the councillors present at the meeting, said the funds that had been received by the MC for various development works were allegedly not being allowed to be used. “This is the major issue that was discussed,” he said.

Source said this was one of the issues that had troubled everyone. Since it is expected that both Aam Aadmi Party MLAs Raman Arora and Sheetal Angural will attend the meeting, the councillors have planned to team up and then take up this serious matter with the MLAs.

“They are responsible for everything now. They have formed the government and now cannot run away from their duties. We will definitely ask them why there was an obstruction in using the funds that we received for various works,” a councillor said.

Onkar Tikka, another councillor, said matter of the MC Commissioner not allowing any new development work will also be raised. “Some of the works related to my ward are not in progress because the newly appointed MC Commissioner is not giving go ahead,” he claimed.

Congress wary of Beri

As per the reports, some Congress councillors from Jalandhar Central constituency also expressed a concern that former Congress MLA Rajinder Beri, who was defeated by AAP’s Raman Arora this time, will ensure that none of the party councillors win this election. They cited that MLA was of the view that they (councillors) had hatched conspiracy to help defeat Beri. After this, Vipin Kumar Chadha, a Congress councillor, said openly that he was the one who did not let Beri win the election.