Kolkata, June 6 IANS) Legal complications have emerged over the continuation of the Trinamool Congress-controlled board in the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC), following the resignation of Mayor Firhad Hakim

Firhad Hakim officially resigned as the Mayor of the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC), the oldest and biggest urban civic body in West Bengal, on Friday afternoon.

After the development, the state municipal affairs and urban development department has issued a notice to KMC Chairperson and TMC Lok Sabha MP Mala Roy under Section 117(1) of the KMC Act, 1980, directing her to dissolve the existing board. The provision empowers the state government to dissolve the corporation.

However, Mala Roy has refused to comply, arguing instead for the continuation of the present board for its full term under Section 38 of the KMC Act, which provides that the Deputy Mayor can assume the duties of the Mayor under unforeseen circumstances or in the Mayor’s absence.

The provision under Section 38 of the KMC Act, 1980, ensures continuity in the executive governance and municipal administration of Kolkata without stalling critical decision-making or city operations.

Mala Roy had argued that till the time the new Mayor is appointed from among existing councilors through a vote of confidence, the Deputy Mayor could carry out the functions under Section 28 of the KMC Act. The current Deputy Mayor of the KMC is Atin Ghosh.

However, a counter-argument has been raised by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) councilor and party legislator, Sajal Ghosh. According to him, the Mayor’s resignation means that the entire Mayor-in-Council has resigned automatically.

“The councilors remain. But the Mayor-in-Council is dissolved upon the Mayor’s resignation. It is a constitutional matter. The Municipal Commissioner, who is a bureaucrat, can give further insight on the matter,” Ghosh said.

While Hakim announced his decision to resign from the Mayor’s chair earlier this week, he officially tendered his resignation on Friday.

Explaining his decision, he said, “The chair of the Mayor of KMC has a different sort of dignity considering the great personalities who occupied the chair before me. I had worked with full authority as a Mayor for a long time, since I was the Mayor and also handled the state municipal affairs and urban development department then. I single-handedly managed the dual duties. But in the changed situation, that is not possible anymore. So, I do not want to insult the chair anymore,” Hakim said on Friday.

–IANS

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