Councillors junk idea of dissolving P’kula MC

Rajinder Nagarkoti

Tribune News Service

Panchkula, December 14

The Panchkula MC General House today passed a resolution with majority against the dissolution of the Municipal Corporation.

However, MLAs Gian Chand Gupta and Latika Sharma favoured separate bodies for Kalka and Pinjore. As the MC House passed the resolution to maintain the status quo, Kalka MLA Latika Sharma walked out of the meeting in protest.

As both MLAs and three nominated councillors, who were also in the favour of separate bodies for Kalka and Pinjore, did not have any voting right, the agenda against the dissolution was passed with majority. Of 19 elected councillors, who were present in the today’s meeting, 17 were against the dissolution of the Panchkula Municipal Corporation.

The Kalka MLA had even brought banners with signatures of people supporting separate civic bodies for Kalka and Pinjore.

The Congress, INLD and independent councillors, who were against the dissolution, even submitted a resolution to Mayor Upinder Kaur Ahluwalia, which read, “It is recommended through this resolution that the present Municipal Corporation should continue as it is and the act of abolition or even separation of Kalka and Pinjore is completely unwarranted at this stage. However, this House is open for minor alteration of boundaries subjected to Section 3 (3) of the Haryana Municipal Corporation Act, 1994, and Section 4 of the Haryana Municipal Act, 1973”.

Ambala Divisional Commissioner Vivek Joshi had two rounds of meeting with the MC Commissioner and Panchkula DC Gauri Parashar Joshi to take a call on the dissolution of the MC.

On the demand of Kalka MLA Latika Sharma, the Urban Local Bodies Department, Haryana, had sought a report from the Divisional Commissioner, Ambala, by December 15. Recently, Kalka MLA Latika Sharma had written to Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar, submitting that under the Municipal Corporation, no development had taken place in Kalka and Pinjore. Therefore, Pinjore and Kalka should be separated from the Panchkula MC.