The Tamil Nadu Government has decided to do away with the system of direct election to the post of mayors in the municipal corporations in the State. With four months to go for the election to local bodies in the State, SP Velumani, Minister for local Administration on Wednesday moved a Bill Tamil Nadu Municipal Corporation laws (Amendment Act) 2016 in the House which does away with the present system of civic heads getting directly elected by the people.
The Amended Act specifies that the corporation councillors in their first meeting after the civic elections would sit together and elect one of them as mayor. The major corporations in the State has been witnessing high voltage campaign and electioneering for the mayoral election hitherto.
“It has been brought to the attention of the Government that councils of certain corporations are not functioning properly since mayor does not enjoy the support of the councillors. It is considered that if the mayor of a corporation enjoys the support of the majority of councillors, the councillors can function in a better manner,” said Minister Velumani while moving the Bill.
The term of the current local bodies in the State is coming to an end by the third week of October. Hence the State is all set to witness yet another high decibel election to the local bodies by October. last time, the election to the post of mayors and other civic heads in the State drew national attention following the defection of BJP’s mayoral candidates to the AIADMK at the peak of election campaign.