BJP MLAs also spoke in Pune about cess on petrol and delay in installing CCTVs in city's prime areas
BJP MLA and Public Accounts Committee (PAC) chairman Girish Bapat said on Sunday that there was enough evidence to file a criminal case against Pune Lok Sabha MP Suresh Kalmadi. He said he had pointed that out to state home minister RR Patil at a meeting last week.
Bapat was replying to a question on Kalmadi posed to him at the press conference in the city on Sunday. BJP MLA Madhuri Misal also addressed mediamen.
Bapat said PAC had already submitted its report on Kalmadi to the state government. The government was supposed to prepare an Action Taken Report (ATR), but there was no time stipulated for giving the ATR. He said that since ATR was yet to come, he met RR Patil and told him that there was evidence.
On a question about the newly-constructed Maharashtra Sadan, Bapat said, “PAC visited the site after the alleged scam in the construction in New Delhi broke. The auditor general has been asked to submit an interim report after which PAC will take necessary steps.”
Bapat said that the tender for the Maharashtra Sadan was first worth Rs88 crore, then it went up to Rs100 crore and then to Rs200 crore. He said that PAC would look into what profit the contractor was supposed to get while constructing it on build-operate-transfer (BOT) basis.
BJP for cess on petrol, not for flyover toll
Bapat said BJP would support the ruling NCP-Congress alliance if it imposed cess on petrol instead of starting a toll at Swargate flyover, underpasses and over-bridges. He made it clear that BJP would support the alliance in Pune Municipal Corporation if it came up with such a proposal.
The BJP MLAs told mediapersons that when a flyover is built to reduce traffic congestion, and save people’s time. But if a toll is imposed to compensate for its expenditure, there would be long queues at the tool booth again leading to another traffic jam. This, in turn, nullifies the very purpose of building a flyover or a sub-way or am overbridge.
Bapat said that deputy chief minister and Pune guardian minister Ajit Pawar had said a day before that Punekars would have to be prepared for the cess while they were provided with flyovers and other infrastructure.
Both Misal and Bapat said that the cess on petrol would be 3-4 paise per liter which was comparatively a small amount. Therefore that would be a better option, than imposing toll.
The MLAs said that BJP maintained its stand on bio-diversity park (BDP) reservations. It had been in favour of only 0.08 per cent construction on the hill-tops and hill-slopes.
BJP demonstrations against delay in CCTVs
Alleging lack of decision-making on part of the government over CCTV installation in Pune, BJP announced on Sunday that it would stage hunger strike and demonstrations in various parts of the city to get the demand fulfilled.
“Soon after guardian minister Ajit Pawar’s decision to instal CCTVs in Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad, we had submitted letters saying we wanted to chip in with Rs10 lakh from our MLA fund. But, after the “resignation drama” of Ajit Pawar, the chief secretary decided to take charge of this project, and nothing happened after that,” Bapat said, adding that the money offered by BJP MLAs was later returned. He said there was was no sign of CCTVs in Pune even though the incident of blasts at Jangli Maharaj Road was completing one year on August 1.
The BJP MLAs accused the Congress-NCP government of bias against opposition MLAs as they did not provide funds to constituencies represented by opposition MLAs.
Bapat said that BJP MLAs and MLCs would stage demonstrations across the city protesting against this bias, while also pushing for development works. The party would announce the date of the demonstrations soon, he added.
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