The ugly side of municipal council politics was out in the open at the Curchorem-Cacora Municipal Council on Thursday, a day where chairpersons and deputies were being elected. The BJP may have scored a thumping 6-1 victory in the first phase of elections, but its desperation to see itself in power was evident when basic democratic norms were viciously trampled and a mandate disrespected.
Instead of respecting the vote of councillors, what is forced upon the civic body was unprecedented in the history of municipal politics. A democratically elected chairperson was served a no-confidence motion within one hour of his election after a meeting with local MLA and Power Minister Nilesh Cabral. Call it ego politics or a game of one-upmanship, the flip-flop and the hectic involvement of the local MLA reeks of political pressure to reverse a mandate.
The local MLA featured in a video on Friday slamming the move of a few councillors to backtrack and vote against the party-backed candidate, terming it unethical and unprincipled. We ponder why the council is not allowed its independence. Why is the vote of elected representatives not respected? If three have voted against the BJP nominee, it is their choice, even if it is against the BJP-backed group. They have a fundamental right to decision-making. We live in a free democracy, not an autocracy.
Forcing a no-confidence on a chairperson without even testing his performance stinks of political vendetta and comes as a blot on BJP’s pompous display of victory in the first phase. Ministers getting deeply entrenched in local body elections to the extent that they make their presence felt even at municipal council meetings shows the degree of high-handedness exercised to control local bodies. The sight of Cabral fuming away with his flower bouquet in tow after his nominee failed to make it to the chair, without even congratulating the winner, tells the story.
In Canacona, where BJP claimed to have swept all the 12 seats, the tussle was over the chairperson's post with the party split 7-5. For the record, it was BJP versus BJP in Canacona, with the majority 7-member group refusing to toe the party line to the extent of even turning down an appeal from the party leadership to change course. In Cuncolim, the intense lobbying to install a BJP-backed chairperson failed with the Alemaos warding off strong moves to split the 9-member Congress-backed group. Councillors were reported to have gone into hiding, some holed up in unknown destinations, others lured with offers of jobs and money, and a few threatened with dire consequences.
Thursday’s developments in Curchorem-Cacora and Canacona have set a horrible precedent of horse-trading in an area that doesn’t come within the purview of the anti-defection law. Installing councils will always be tricky in areas where a single group doesn’t get a clear majority. Moving on, the BJP could find it extremely difficult to keep its flock together, given the dynamics of local bodies and alignments of members. Attempting to sustain the party hold through unscrupulous means will only vitiate the civic atmosphere.
