Deputy Mayor inaugurates renovated Aristo Road amid LDF boycott
Though the LDF leadership, including the Mayor and Standing Committee Chairman Varghese Kandamkulathy, abstained from the event, the Deputy Mayor delivered the inaugural address and symbolically opened the newly completed road .
In her speech, Ms. Rosy hit out at the politicisation of development work, stating that infrastructure projects should not become battlegrounds for party politics. She credited councillors Leela Varghese and Sindhu Anto Chacko for their sincere efforts in making the Aristo Road a reality, noting that multiple protests had been carried out both inside and outside the council to push the project forward. She further alleged that the Mayor's office is being run by temporary staff.
Opposition leader Rajan J. Pallan accused the LDF of deliberately trying to hijack the inauguration and turn it into an LDF-only event, sidelining the efforts of other councillors. He claimed that Ms. Varghese and Ms. Chacko had informed the Mayor about the inauguration schedule and had officially handed over the event notice at his chamber.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Hindu
20 hours ago
- The Hindu
Distribution of 43,000 newly approved priority ration cards begins
Food and Civil Supplies Minister G.R. Anil on Wednesday inaugurated the Statewide distribution of 43,000 newly approved priority ration cards. Speaking on the occasion, the Minister said the Left Democratic Front (LDF) government had identified 2,94,578 ineligible families holding priority ration cards. As many as 17,596 cards were confiscated from ineligible card holders through the government's intensive verification drive 'Operation Yellow'. As part of such efforts, over 5,29,000 ration cards were reassigned since the LDF government came to power, he said. Clarifying that the revision of the priority list is an ongoing process, he said: 'If a family member secures a government job or the family income exceeds the eligibility threshold, they will be removed from the list,' he said. He added that applications for new priority ration cards will be accepted online from September 16 to October 15. The Minister also highlighted a significant surge in sales at Supplyco outlets. A total of ₹168.28 crore has been reported in sales for the month of July alone, with a daily average of ₹6.5 crore. On August 2, sales reached ₹8.01 crore, followed by ₹8.84 crore on August 4 and ₹7.56 crore on August 5. These numbers indicate a strong upward trend expected to continue in the coming days during the Onam festive season, Mr. Anil said. Antony Raju, MLA, presided over the function.
The Hindu
21 hours ago
- The Hindu
Deputy Mayor inaugurates renovated Aristo Road amid LDF boycott
The inauguration of the renovated Aristo Road turned controversial on Wednesday after Deputy Mayor M.L. Rosy went ahead with the function despite a boycott by Mayor M.K. Varghese and key members of the ruling LDF council. Though the LDF leadership, including the Mayor and Standing Committee Chairman Varghese Kandamkulathy, abstained from the event, the Deputy Mayor delivered the inaugural address and symbolically opened the newly completed road . In her speech, Ms. Rosy hit out at the politicisation of development work, stating that infrastructure projects should not become battlegrounds for party politics. She credited councillors Leela Varghese and Sindhu Anto Chacko for their sincere efforts in making the Aristo Road a reality, noting that multiple protests had been carried out both inside and outside the council to push the project forward. She further alleged that the Mayor's office is being run by temporary staff. Opposition leader Rajan J. Pallan accused the LDF of deliberately trying to hijack the inauguration and turn it into an LDF-only event, sidelining the efforts of other councillors. He claimed that Ms. Varghese and Ms. Chacko had informed the Mayor about the inauguration schedule and had officially handed over the event notice at his chamber.
The Hindu
2 days ago
- The Hindu
Venugopal writes to Shah, Chhattisgarh CM seeking closure of ‘fabricated case' against 2 nuns
Congress general secretary K.C. Venugopal on Tuesday separately wrote to Home Minister Amit Shah and Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai urging them to take necessary steps to facilitate the closure of the 'fabricated case' against two Catholic nuns from Kerala who are accused of human trafficking and forced conversion. In his letters to Mr. Shah and Mr. Sai, Mr. Venugopal also demanded that strict legal proceedings be initiated against those who physically attacked the nuns and the tribal women. Two nuns from Kerala and another person, accused of human trafficking and forced conversion, were released from the Durg Central Jail in Chhattisgarh on Saturday after a court granted them bail, holding that the case was based on 'mere suspicion.' Leaders of the Congress and the ruling Left Democratic Front (LDF) in Kerala welcomed the news and accused the BJP of ignoring the atrocities against minorities in the States ruled by it while championing their cause in the southern State. In his letter to Mr. Shah, Mr. Venugopal said the arrest of the nuns and the events leading up to it represent a gross misuse of state power, driven not by law but by communal prejudice and political malice. 'The arrest stemmed from an entirely baseless FIR filed by a Bajrang Dal-affiliated individual, who fabricated allegations against the nuns based on vague 'apprehensions.' Far from being victims of trafficking or conversion, they were assaulted and coerced by Bajrang Dal members to give false statements implicating the nuns,' the MP from Kerala's Alappuzha said. 'Despite repeated complaints from the nuns and tribal women about manhandling, coercion, and mistreatment, the police have failed to register an FIR against the actual perpetrators. This blatant inaction reflects the disturbing bias, double standards, and extreme one-sidedness in what is clearly a politically motivated case of misrepresentation and harassment,' Mr. Venugopal said. The conditional bail granted to the accused after eight days of unjust incarceration following sustained protests by the Opposition and the public, including the Christian community, is an indictment of the injustice they were subjected to, he alleged. 'I urge you to take all necessary steps to facilitate the closure of this fabricated case in a time-bound manner, ensuring that the investigation reflects the truth and upholds constitutional values. At the same time, I also demand that strict legal proceedings be initiated against those who physically attacked the nuns and the tribal women. An FIR must be filed based on their statements,' Mr. Venugopal said in his letter to Shah. The impunity enjoyed by such vigilante elements must be decisively ended if the rule of law and constitutional order are to be upheld, he said. Mr. Venugopal made similar demands in his letter to Mr. Sai. Earlier in the day, United Democratic Front (UDF) MPs held a protest in the Parliament House complex, demanding that the cases in Chhattisgarh against the Catholic nuns be dropped and the 'Bajrang Dal goons who attacked the nuns' and the women be prosecuted for their hate crimes. Catholic nuns Preethy Mary and Vandana Francis and another person were arrested by the Government Railway Police (GRP) at the Durg railway station on July 25 following a complaint from a local Bajrang Dal functionary, who accused them of forcibly converting three girls from Narayanpur and trafficking them. The arrest sparked off a political slugfest with the Congress and CPI(M) criticising the police action and Mr. Sai accusing them of politicising the issue.
