DIBRUGARH: Amidst charges of
corruption
and financial irregularities against the
Dibrugarh
Municipal Board (DMB), the chairperson of the civic body,
Soma Chakraborty, has been directed by the secretary of the state urban development department, HD Sarma, to appear before him at the department's office in Guwahati on November 4. Chakraborty has been asked to explain why Section 298 of the
Assam Municipal Act, 1956 (power to dissolve the board) should not be imposed on the Dibrugarh Municipal Board.
In a letter to the DMB chairperson, Sarma mentioned that "illegal activities" were taking place in the municipal board, as alleged by different sources. He stated the list of the charges as brought by the director of municipal administration, Assam and the deputy commissioner, Dibrugarh. The list of charges against Chakraborty include improper maintenance of the main cash book and log books for office vehicles, improper maintenance of the records of the urban local body's assets, irregularities in leasing out municipal lands, carrying out the tendering process for allotment of market, parking, hoardings etc without taking the board's resolution into consideration and financial irregularities.
The DMB chairperson has, however, denied the allegations and said that she will appear before the secretary on Monday to respond to the allegations. "I have been asked to appear before the secretary at 11am on Monday. I will appear and respond to the allegations levelled against the Dibrugarh Municipal Board," Chakraborty said. Since her appointment as the chairperson of the BJP-controlled Dibrugarh Municipal Board on April 24, 2017, Chakraborty has been facing rebellion from the ward commissioners of her own party.
On October 31, 2018, ten BJP ward commissioners of the 22-member board had brought a no-confidence motion against Chakraborty. The no-trust motion was supported by the five Congress ward commissioners and the sole Independent member. Though Chakraborty was not present during the floor test, the rebel ward commissioners took a resolution removing her from the post of chairperson with immediate effect.
Chakraborty, who termed her removal as arbitrary and illegal, filed a writ petition (WP (C) 7684/2018) at the Gauhati high court challenging her removal from the post of the chairperson. She got a breather as the high court directed the rebel members not to proceed with the resolution.
The rebel ward commissioners had then alleged that since her appointment as chairperson, Chakraborty had been acting in an autocratic manner and had failed to convene a single official board meeting as per provision of the Assam Municipality Act, 1956. Other allegations against Chakraborty include taking financial decisions without consulting the members, failure to provide financial details of revenue and expenditure, failure to take corrective measures to curb corruption in departments like hoardings and sanitary, allotment of markets without following proper tendering, and failure to keep the town clean.