DNA: Ahmedabad: Tuesday, May 22, 2018.
A Public
Interest Litigation (PIL) before the vacation bench of the Gujarat High Court
on Monday challenged the move by the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) to
allow 65 councillors and 8 MLAs the use of various community halls, party plots
and such without due process and in violation of the rules.
It is alleged
that the standing committee of the AMC through a one-line resolution allowed
this to happen even though this was in violation of the normal process of
booking of municipal premises.
It has
further alleged that the municipal premises so booked in the name of
councillors for a particular function was, in fact, being used by someone else.
The petition by one Khemchand Rajaram Koshti, a lawyer also alleged that the
resolution ensured that all such municipal premises were booked for the year
2018 as well as 2019. The petition has called the move by the standing
committee of AMC as unreasonable and abuse of power and has sought from the
court that the resolution by quashed.
The court has
issued a notice to the AMC and the state government in the matter.
The petition
said the civic body runs 28 community halls, 17 party plots, 5 auditoriums and
3 picnic houses which are available for rent for the various occasion including
marriages at an economical rate.
The petition
said information sought under the RTI Act revealed that the municipal premises
like community halls were being booked eight months in advance while the rules
state it can be booked only six months in advance.
The RTI
revealed that in some cases, the premises was booked in the name of a
councillor and on that particular date the function of someone else was held
there. It alleged that such collusion between the AMC and the elected
representatives meant the public did not get the benefit of the premises even
though it was constructed by public money.
The petition
said until 2008 the process of booking such a premise was done manually. From
2009 onwards it became online and anyone wishing to book a premise of the
corporation had to apply six months in advance. It further added that the rent
was to be paid by demand draft.