PONDA: The dispute between agitating vendors and Ponda Municipal Council (PMC) over the sopo tax is expected to continue after the 11-day Ganesh festival comes to an end.
The PMC and the vendors have locked horns over the issue since the past three months, but agitations by vendors had been curtailed on account of the ongoing Ganesh festival.
According to sources, the vendors are planning a legal battle to challenge the PMC on the sopo issue.
The vendors had earlier suspected that the PMC Chief Officer Johnson Fernandes, who is also Deputy Collector of Ponda taluka, had acted in connivance with the PMC. They subsequently changed their stand, after the leader of the vendors, Kishore Mamlekar, stated that Fernandes had acted legally on the sopo issue.
According to Mamlekar, the chief officer had noted that the sopo contract should be terminated by PMC, as the contractor had failed to pay the sopo instalment.
This noting has now become a key issue for the vendors who have now demanded the termination of sopo contract.
“The PMC, which was silent due to the Ganesh festival, is likely to take action against the vendors on September 12 and we are fully prepared to face such action,” Mamlekar said.
“If PMC seeks legal action and seizes our goods for non-payment of sopo, the vendors will resort to yet another market bandh. We will also stage a rally at the police station,” he warned.
“The vendors have filed an RTI application with PMC to seek information as to how much instalment has been paid by the contractor since May 16. They have also sought details of bounced cheques by the contractor, if any, and other relevant details from PMC,” he said.
