Cong councillor from Metiabruz area joins TMC

Kolkata: The councillor of Ward 137 under Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC), Wasim Ansari, joined Trinamool Congress (TMC) citing reasons of not being able to execute any developmental works for the people of his ward.

The switchover has further crippled the position of Congress within the KMC. Ansari’s defection has now reduced the number of Congress councillors to one. Ansari took the TMC flag from MLA Abdul Khalek Mollah.

Ansari was elected from Ward 137 in the Metiabruz area. Commenting on why he decided to make the sudden switch, he said that he was not able to work for the people.

His bone of contention is that he was not able to do any developmental work in his ward. Hence, he said that he realised that he could only do such work for the people by staying in Trinamool Congress and working under the leadership of Mamata Banerjee.

After Ansari’s defection, Santosh Pathak remains the lone Congress councillor in KMC. He, however, refused to comment on the switchover of his former party colleague.

Even as the move by Ansari weakened the Congress, it increased the strength of TMC’s councillors which now stands at 136.

Such a development also comes at a time when the mayor Firhad Hakim recently remarked during the last monthly meeting that the fact that Opposition has been reduced to nothing inside KMC shows where lies the faith of the people.

Hakim made the remark while pointing out that such is the condition of the Opposition that no proper questions relating to civic issues are being highlighted inside the House. He said that now TMC is having to ask its councillors to play the role of Opposition.

Presently, the number of Opposition councillors inside KMC stands at around eight which includes three BJP councillors, one each of CPI(M) and Congress, one CPI and two independent councillors.