Activists to protest outside MCC on March 5 against the delay in holding civic body polls

Activists, including the retired professor of the University of Mysore Nanjaraj Urs, at a meeting in Mysuru on Monday.
| Photo Credit: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT

Activists will be staging a demonstration outside the Mysuru City Corporation (MCC) office on March 5, protesting against the delay in holding elections for the civic body.

Even though 15 months had elapsed since the term of the MCC ended in November 2023, there is no sign of the State government having a plan to hold the polls. The delay caused the citizens to face official apathy toward their civic problems, said the activists at Jaladarshini Guest House on Monday.

The activists, under the aegis of the MCC Elections Struggle Committee, will hold a demonstration at 11.30 a.m. and will distribute pamphlets in various mohallas to create awareness among the general public about the need to hold early elections for the civic body.

A similar meeting was convened on March 1 which was attended by a retired professor of the University of Mysore Nanjaraj Urs, former Mayor Purushotham, CPM leader L. Jagannath, and social activists Arvind Sharma and Sosale Siddaraju to discuss the problems faced by the residents due to the absence of an elected body.

Speaking to The Hindu on Monday, Prof. Nanjaraj pointed out that addressing the civic problems faced by the residents cannot be entirely left to the officials. Issues like uncleared garbage, UGD blockages, lack of drinking water supply, absence of street lights, and repair of roads can be effectively addressed only with the help of their elected representative in the Council.

Unfortunately, the State government has been delaying the polls given the proposal to create a Greater Mysuru City Corporation (GMCC) or Bruhat Mysuru Mahanagara Palike (BMMP), he said.

It would take another three years to create a GMCC, said Prof. Nanjaraj, citing the time needed to increase the number of wards from the existing 65 to 99 by earmarking boundaries of new wards and reserving the seats for various categories.

He said the creation of a GMCC, which will include the areas falling under the limits of Hootagalli City Municipal Council (CMC) and town panchayats of Ramanahalli, Srirampura, Bogadi, and Kadakola, and several gram panchayats on the outskirts of Mysuru, will go through a process involving the passing of a Bill in the State Legislature and the Governor giving his assent.

Mr. Nanjaraj clarified that they were not against the proposal to create a GMCC but said the government was using it as an excuse to delay the much-needed MCC polls.