State government appoints administrator to run Darjeeling Municipality

Kolkata: The state government on Tuesday appointed an administrator to run Darjeeling Municipality for six months or till the newly elected councillors take over.

The additional district magistrate (general) has been appointed as the administrator.

The Darjeeling Municipality was dissolved on Tuesday and an administrator appointed vide an order from the Urban Development and Municipal Affairs Department, Government of West Bengal.

The order (547/MA/O/C-4/1A-12/2019) dated 18.06.19 has appointed Additional District Magistrate (General) as Administrator of Darjeeling Municipality with immediate

effect. The order states that the municipality has been dissolved under sub-section (2) of section 431 of the West Bengal Municipal Act, 1993.

With the dissolution of municipality an administrative vacuum has emerged which is "required to be filled up to ensure smooth running of public services in the municipal area of the said municipality in public interest," stated the order.

With the dissolution all powers and functions vested upon the municipal authorities under this Act or any other law in force shall be exercised by the administrator appointed by the state government added the order. The ADM (general,) Darjeeling, has been appointed as the Administrator of the Darjeeling Municipality with "immediate effect for a period not exceeding six months or until the newly elected Councillors take over charge, whichever is earlier," stated the order.

"We have received the order" confirmed Deepap Priya P, District Magistrate, Darjeeling.

Incidentally, an impasse had occurred in the Darjeeling Municipality since May 29 with a group of councilors submitting a memorandum to Prativa Rai Tamang, Chairperson asking her to prove her majority. They claimed that they had 17 councillors with them in the existing house of 30 with the board owing allegiance to the Binay Tamang faction of the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha.

Later, the councilors who had tried to bring the motion of no confidence stopped attending office.

They were not seen in town and had even gone underground.

The 17 suddenly resurfaced in Delhi on June 8 where they joined the BJP in the presence of senior

BJP leaders. Since then they have not returned to Darjeeling and are still camping in Delhi.