Sena’s Nandu Satam to be next mayor

This is the first time in the BMC’s history that the mayor will be elected unopposed. Sulochana Modi of the Congress had been elected unopposed in 1956, but only as a fill-in arrangement for a month. The municipal commissioner will call a meeting of the house on April 25, when he will announce the name of the speaker first, and the speaker will then announce the new mayor’s name.

However, candidates for the post of deputy mayor and deputy speaker haven’t been decided yet. The post of deputy mayor is likely to be given to the BJP, Satam said, adding the decision will be taken by senior leaders. Heinformed the new Cabinet would also be decided after the mayor’s election.

Satam has been with the Shiv Sena since the party’s inception in 1966. A shakhapramukh from 1975 to 1985, he became a corporator from Worli in 1985 and was elected chairperson of the improvements committee for six years. He was also member of the standing committee for a year, and held the reins of opposition leader of the house for two years. He is presently leader of the house and also heads the Municipal Karmachari Sena union. He enjoys considerable hold among his party corporators and also in the BMC.

Speaking to the press today, Satam said he would first hold a meeting with Sena chief Bal Thackeray and other senior party leaders to find out how the system could be put to use in the common man’s interest.

“I will then hold meetings with senior administrators to understand their problems and also with Cabinet members. Only after this I will be able to list the priorities,” he said.

After holding a meeting with allCongress corporators, Bombay Regional Congress Committee president Murli Deora told presspersons today the Congress had decided to boycott the polls, because the Mayor-in-Council system had been introduced in haste and it was bereft of transparency, accountability and responsibility. He said the new system would lead to organised corruption and declared the Congress would discontinue the system if it came to power in BMC.

Deora added a delegation would also meet the Governor in this regard, though he admitted there’s little the Governor could do now. He said the Congress would take the issue on to the streets.

There will now be 12 committees in the municipal corporation – 1) the BEST undertaking, 2) improvement trust, 3) women and child welfare and markets and gardens, which includes shops and establishment, 4) licence and Deonar abattoir, 5) general administration (vigilance, enquiry, fire brigade, law, labour, security, PRO), 6) finance and planning (octroi, assessment), 7) city engineer (mechanicaland electrical), 8) education, 9) health and hospitals, 10) water supply and sewerage project, 11) solid waste management and sanitation and 12) roads and traffic.