The Opposition disrupts Palakkad municipal vice chairman E. Krishnadas from presenting the proposals for the 2023-24 Budget at the council hall on Wednesday.
| Photo Credit: K.K. MUSTAFAH
The presentation of the annual Budget of the Palakkad municipal council ended in bedlam here on Wednesday as the Opposition comprising the United Democratic Front (UDF) and the Left Democratic Front (LDF) members stalled the proceedings.
The Opposition members raised a banner of protest over the ruling BJP not giving a gist of the Budget before its presentation. They raised slogans in front of the chairperson’s podium as vice chairperson E. Krishnadas presented the Budget.
The Opposition tore the Budget copy and later burned it outside the municipal office. The protest led to an eyeball-to-eyeball situation between the ruling and Opposition councillors. The protest spilled over to the road even though chairperson Priya Ajayan offered to continue the discussion over the Budget for another day.
Funds issue
Presenting the Budget, Mr. Krishnadas said that the State government’s slashing of the funds for Palakkad, one of the two municipalities ruled by the BJP in Kerala, had seriously affected the town’s development. He said the funds given by the Centre had been pivotal in Palakkad’s development. “The State government slashed Rs. 16 crore in the last three years,” he said.
Mr. Krishnadas said that 80% of the Rs. 221.75 crore given by the Union government as part of the Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) project was spent for completing 123 schemes. He said that a modern alternative would be found for waste management in view of the Brahmapuram blaze.
BJP district president K.M. Haridas accused the UDF and the CPI(M) of joining hands to challenge the democratic process in Palakkad. He said the Congress and the CPI(M) were engaged in a Tripura-model alliance in Palakkad. “Both the fronts (UDF and LDF) are cheating the people,” he said.
