TEAM HERALD
CHORAO: The Chorao panchayat came under heavy fire at the gram sabha for overruling the locals’ decision to hold a special gram sabha concerning the Chorao bridge. Most of the members left the hall in protest after two hours of heated arguments.
At the previous gram sabha on March 8, it was unanimously resolved to hold a special meeting and no ordinary ones until they knew the status of the proposed bridge. The panchayat ignored the resolution and forcibly called a regular gram sabha on Sunday. The special gram sabha was clearly mentioned when the secretary read the minutes of the last meeting.
Locals demanded the sarpanch to stop the gram sabha and host a special one within 15 days. Sarpanch Arti Bandodkar and ex-sarpanch Premanand Mahambre told them the resolution was unimportant, and hence, was overruled. The locals then demanded a referendum, which was also shot down by the sarpanch.
An overwhelming number of villagers demanded the sarpanch to hold the referendum of the special gram sabha. The secretary also expressed his support, but said the decision was ultimately left to the sarpanch. The arguments went on for almost two hours.
An under-pressure Bandodkar was forced to call the police as the mob began getting out of hand.
United Citizens of Chorao Convener Shrikrishna Haldankar then stood on the platform and challenged the police to make an arrest. The police, however, declined. By that time, most of the villagers had left the hall while chanting slogans to protest the sarpanch’s “undemocratic” behaviour.
