Two days after it diverted the local development fund of Baner area for seeking enquiry into the irregularities in spending of development funds by BJP legislator and state minister Chandrakant Patil in the area, the ruling BJP has targeted another NCP corporator Suhas Tingre of Tingrenagar. The party has diverted development funds of Rs 11.5 crore for the area he represents in the civic body, for signing the resolution tabled by NCP corporator Amol Balwadkar, who represents Baner.
The civic standing committee chaired by BJP corporator Srinath Bhimale passed a resolution diverting Rs 11.5 crore meant for civic works of Tingrenagar to the electoral ward of BJP corporators. “The proposal to divert the funds was tabled by two BJP corporators so they were approved by the standing committee through majority voting in favour of it,” said Bhimale.
BJP leader Ganesh Bidkar said Balwadkar has been criticising the state BJP leaders and misbehaving in the civic general body. “The NCP corporator should not have sought enquiry into the spending of development funds by Kothrud assembly legislators. Thus, it was decided to cancel the development funds allocated to the electoral area of the NCP corporators.”
NCP corporator Suhas Tingre, brother of city NCP chief Sunil Tingre, said it was a shock the way BJP was playing politics of revenge. “It is our democratic right to raise public issues. They had rejected the resolution for enquiry and the issue should have ended there. However, they took revenge by canceling development funds of the area which the NCP corporators were representing. If there is nothing wrong in the development funds spent by BJP legislators then they should face the inquiry why take revenge,” he said adding the proposal for canceling the funds meant for the electoral ward of Tingrenagar will now be tabled in the civic general body.
If it is approved there then the NCP will decide on a future strategy to take on the BJP, he said. The NCP corporator said the development funds are meant for the electoral ward to develop civic facilities for the citizens of the area and the BJP by canceling them are making the citizens of the ward suffer.
City NCP chief Sunil Tingre said that the BJP decision to divert local area development funds of electoral ward of two of NCP corporators speaks of their mentality of dictatorship. “If other political party corporators don’t agree to the BJP decisions or challenge them then the ruling BJP leaders threaten the corporators by diverting funds of the area they represent. They are actually taking away the development of citizens of the area and we will protest against this,” he said.
Balwadkar said that if the BJP thinks that they will suppress us by taking such decisions then they are wrong. “We have been elected by citizens and it is for citizens that we proposed development work in the area. Late NCP chief Ajit Pawar was the state Finance minister for many years but never differentiated among legislators of any political party, including BJP, while allocating development funds for the assembly segments,” he added.
