No-confidence motion stops Arjun from presenting budget
Kolkata: Bhatpara Municipality chairman Arjun Singh, who has recently joined BJP, failed to present the budget for the municipality on Wednesday after a majority of Trinamool Congress councillors moved a no-confidence motion against him.
Singh, who has become a candidate on BJP's ticket from the Barrackpore Parliamentary constituency, called for a budget session on Wednesday afternoon. But the executive officer of the municipality did not give the permission as a no-confidence motion had already been moved against him. The officer said that the chairman has no right to hold the budget session. He has to take permission from the district magistrate if he wants to do so.
Some Trinamool Congress councillors from the municipality said that Singh can present the budget only after he wins the confidence of the municipal board, through secret ballots of the councillors. Otherwise, he has no right to present budget at the municipality.
Incidentally, it may be mentioned here that 21 Trinamool Congress councillors had moved a no-confidence motion against Singh soon after he joined BJP.
The councillors consulted Firhad Hakim, the state Urban Development and Municipal Affairs minister, Jyotipriya Mallick, the state Food and Supplies minister and president of the North 24-Parganas unit of the party and Partha Bhowmick, party MLA from Naihati, before moving the no-confidence motion.
Bhatpara has a total of 35 seats, of which 34 were won by Trinamool Congress. One councillor belongs to the Left Front. With the death of a councillor and Singh joining another party, TMC's tally now stands at 32.
The majority of TMC councilors, including the vice-chairman Somnath Talukdar, said that they would not join any meeting called by the chairman, unless he wins the confidence of the majority of the councillors.
Some senior Trinamool Congress leaders from the district said that the budget would be presented at the municipality, following the ouster of Singh, after the majority of TMC leaders vote against him in secret ballots.
