Agni keeps Crawford Market issue burning Ashutosh Shukla
Monday, October 15, 2007 08:46 IST
Agitated by the way corporators and their parties have gone about the Crawford Market deal, activists are mobilising support against the proposed private development of the Crawford Market. They now want party leaders to make public their stand on the issue of redeveloping open plots in the city.
At the fourth meeting organised by the A-ward’s joint area action group of the NGO Action for Good Governance and Networking in India (AGNI), 45 activists drafted a four-point resolution which they want the parties to accept.
The meeting was also attended by three corporators from the ward along with the local
MLA Annie Shekhar and BJP’s Shaina N C. Amongst the activists were members of Oval Cooperage Residents Association, Citispace, Mahiti Adhikar Manch, Cuffe Parade Residents Association and AGNI.
Terming the market deal as “treacherous”,
RTI activist Shialesh Gandhi said, “Despite 85 corporators, the Mayor and the opposition leader agreeing that deal was not in the city’s favour they still passed it. Similar will be the case with 100 other markets in line, make the public lose over Rs6000 crore.”
Congress corporators present at the meet sought to wriggle out of the situation saying the Mayor had not allowed them to speak during the passage of the Crawford Market redevelopment proposal. However, Gandhi observed that “even kindergarten kids nowadays don’t take in all that their teacher tells them, how can our coprorators let such a proposal pass without enough questioning.”
When Congress corporator Vinod Shekhar’s proposed that the activists should approach the party leaders, the activists retorted, “it was the responsibility of elected representatives to do so.”
Congress’ Vijaya Dhulla, under whose ward's jurisdiction the Crawford Market falls, said, “If we don't follow our leaders’ line, it will lead to disqualifications, re-election and more expenses.” An activist replied, “So be it. We keep holding elections till we get the right candidate.”
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