16 suspended Akola corporators hold parallel general body in protest

Akola: Sixteen suspended opposition corporators of Akola Municipal Corporation (AMC) held a parallel "general body meeting" as a mark of protest on Friday. The ruling BJP had suspended corporators from Congress, Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi, and Shiv Sena (UBT) for three consecutive meetings over alleged disruption during an earlier session and called the move "undemocratic and unlawful".While the official general body meeting was underway inside the main hall, the suspended corporators erected a tent outside and replicated House proceedings including question hour, discussions on urban development, and passing of resolutions — and even featured staged disruptions, reflecting the frequent clashes seen between the ruling and opposition benches in the actual House.The opposition members appointed their own "symbolic" mayor (Congress corporator Nilofar Khan), deputy mayor (VBA's Parag Gavai), and municipal commissioner (Dr Zeeshan Hussain). Corporators wore black bands as a mark of protest and passed resolutions condemning the BJP-led administration for allegedly suppressing opposition voices. They also accused the ruling party of high-handedness and lack of transparency in civic governance.A key highlight of the protest was a theatrical act in which the "mayor" was handed written notes before announcing decisions — a symbolic attempt to suggest that decisions in the actual House are influenced by external directions. The act drew laughter and curiosity from onlookers present at the venue. Opposition corporators maintained that their suspension violated democratic norms and was aimed at silencing dissent. "This symbolic session is an effort to expose arbitrary governance and present the reality before the public," a protesting member stated. The parallel session attracted more public attention than the official meeting, with citizens and observers describing it as a political satire. The episode underlines the growing rift between the ruling party and the opposition within the civic body.