Trying to wrest back power in NMC, Congress released its manifesto on Tuesday, and promised to waive off property tax for properties upto 500 sq ft, zero bill for 24x7 drinking water supply upto 30,000 litres to households. Harshawardhan Sapkal, President, Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee (MPCC), releasing the manifesto along with Vikas Thakre, MLA and President, Nagpur City Congress Committee, also listed free ride in Aapli Bus to senior citizens, students, ex-servicemen, freedom fighters and to women and making NMC/NIT/Nazul leases as freehold plots. The party has also promised free shops to BPL families in major city markets, and to unemployed graduates, special self employment opportunity and temporary jobs in NMC and NIT. He also said that if Congress is voted to power, it would make Nagpur pothole-free and RL sanction to plots in unauthorised layout and shifting of dumping yard from Bhandewadi.

 

Releasing the manifesto, Sapkal commented that citizens are fed-up of misrule in the Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC), and said Congress Party is committed to resolve the basic civic issues of the city which the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) failed to resolve. Listing the promises to the electorate, Sapkal said, this time around Congress Party is going to recover the lost ground in NMC elections and pointed to recent results of Nagar Palika where it emerged as defacto number two, as Nagpur City Congress Committee President Vikas Thakre beamed with confidence. Addressing mediapersons at Press Club, Sapkal was of view that the SEC needs to take cues from the debacle during municipal council polls and avoid repeat of same mistakes in municipal corporation polls. Sapkal criticised the unholy nexus of election commission, administration and ruling party which he said is a blot on the democracy.

 

“We have seen the way municipal council polls were held, the money flow, and now in municipal corporation ruling party is crossing all limits of decency,” Sapkal said. Going past luring the elected representatives of Opposition camp, the ruling party is now training their guns to ensure unopposed wins for their candidates, claimed the MPCC chief. The way Speaker Rahul Narwekar pressurised administrative machinery to ensure unopposed win for his family members is deplorable. Maharashtra has never seen such acts in over six decades of politics. About rival claims on next Mumbai’s Mayor, Sapkal was of view that ruling party is trying to wedge divide using the age old tactics of occupation forces and same is not in the interest of nation which values on unity in diversity.

 

The Congress stance on the issue is that a nationalist is going to be the next Mayor and of Maharashtra origin and that should be the sprit of all parties. To win election the ruling party is creating diversion while trying to escape responsibility of failed assurances. Questioned about comments of Prakash Ambedkar, the MPCC chief said, each party should maintain decorum and refrain from stoking controversy. Advising Ambedkar to respect the alliance spirit, he accused former of putting up candidates at five places against Congress Party in BMC elections. Abhijit Wanjari, MLC; Ranjit Kamble, Observer for NMC election, Anees Ahmed, ex-Minister, Ashok Dhawad, ex-MLA, Atul Kotecha, Umakant Agnihotri, Vishal Muttemwar, Atul Londhe were also present at the media interaction.