Ludhiana SAD councillors demand MC House meeting

Seeking action against the contractors and the municipal corporation (MC) officials over alleged discrepancies and embezzlement in developmental works, the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) has demanded that a meeting of the MC General House be organised at the earliest.

A delegation of SAD councillors led by leader of opposition Harbhajan Singh Dang met mayor Balkar Sandhu over the issue at MC’s Zone B office on Tuesday.

Councillors and SAD leaders, including Jaspal Giaspura, Sarabjeet Laddi, Gurmail Singh, Manpreet Manna and Vijay Danav, were present in the meeting.

The delegation complained that 12 road samples had failed quality tests in the past, with the mayor himself catching an embezzlement of around Rs 44 lakh in the Jagraon Bridge reconstruction project, but no action has been taken against any contractor or the officials concerned.

Dang said, “MC should act against the contractors as public money is being wasted. There are many other issues related to development works and the mayor should immediately call a General House meeting for resolving the grievances of the councillors.”

The councillors said the meeting can be organised at the Guru Nanak stadium or any other suitable venue where social distancing can be maintained.

Dang and Jaspal Giaspura said, “If the Parliament and Vidhan Sabha sessions can be held, why cannot MC organise a meeting, which is pending since March?”

Mayor Balkar Sandhu said, “The meeting has not been being organised due to the ongoing pandemic, but I will call one soon. It will be held in the stadium or any other suitable place where we could maintain social distancing. The inquiry in Jagraon Bridge case is being done by the local bodies department, and officials have already been given a warning regarding inferior quality works being done in the city.”