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Mayor-in-council will lead to Bombay's separation, says Chavan

Former Maharashtra chief minister S B Chavan said on Monday that the recently-introduced mayor-in-council system for the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation is a decision taken in haste by the Shiv Sena-Bharatiya Janata Party alliance. The move will have far-reaching implications, and result in demand for statehood for Bombay.

Talking to newsmen on the eve of the Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee convention which began at Nashik on Tuesday, the former Union home minister said the decision to introduce the bill was taken in haste. "It should have been referred to the select committee and a public debate could have been initiated," he stated.

Expressing his resentment over the mayor-in-council system, which gives more power to the mayor of the corporation than the municipal commissioner, he said the BMC had a historical background and a total change of functioning will have far-reaching consequences in the running of the premier civic body in the country.

Chavan did not rule out the possibility of a demand for Bombay's statehood, and said it would be disastrous for the future of Maharashtra if that were to happen. In the past the idea of a separate state has been talked about, and with the mayor-in-council system being introduced, "a demand of such a nature cannot be ruled out," he pointed out.

He said the state's economy was in a bad shape and there was a need to wipe out the revenue and fiscal deficits on a priority basis. "You cannot pay salaries from loans," he said.

Talking about the future of the Congress party in Maharashtra, he said it was bright and added that the MPCC convention, which will be attended by Congress president Sonia Gandhi, will pass resolutions to widen its base.

The former chief minister also came down heavily on Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray for justifying the disruption of Pakistani ghazal singer Ghulam Ali's show by Sena activists and the attack on painter M F Husain's home by Bajrang Dal activists. Bombay has a cosmopolitan culture and the incidents should be condemned, he said, adding that it will affect international relations. Even Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee has declared that he was opposed to any moves to ban Pakistani artistes and sportsmen in India, he added.

UNI

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