The opinion of the Jharkhand Advocate General that a Mayor/Chairperson of the urban body is not vested with any executive power to call meetings of councillors; has sparked a controversy.
The coalition government had sought the opinion of the AG on this matter in the wake of regular disputes between the executive and elected bodies in Jharkhand.
In Ranchi the Jharkhand Municipal Corporation has been the worst hit in this dispute where Ranchi Mayor Asha Lakra has often alleged her authority and jurisdiction being undermined by municipal commissioner.
Now, in the wake of AG opinion the Ranchi Mayor addressed a press conference and termed the AG opinion as a murder of democracy.
Referring to Jharkhand Municipal Act 2011, she said that section 74 and 75 of the Act vests power to the Mayor to call the meeting. She added that under section 76 the Mayor can call the meeting on short notice as well as the Mayor has the right to finalise the agenda of the meeting.
She said that she will not hesitate to move to the High Court against the bid of the government to curtail the Constitutional rights of elected representatives.
“What AG has stated is his personal opinion and this is not the law. The Act also says that discussion on any agenda can be taken-up only with permission of chairman. A Mayor is also vested with the right to issue show-cause notices. Mayors are not elected as the show piece of the municipal office,” she said.
Notably, the Ranchi Mayor and Ranchi Municipal Commissioner are at loggerhead on different issues and recently she had issued a show cause notice to officials.
She said she is being prevented from monitoring State as well as Centrally sponsored schemes under Ranchi municipal area. She alleged scams are underway since the developmental works worth in crores were done in Ranchi municipal area without recommendation and approval of the RMC board.
On this issue the Mayor of Hazaribagh Roushni Tirkey said that the government wants to cripple urban bodies and if the right of mayor/chairperson is usurped it will go against the fundamentals of the Panchayati Raj system.