Mohali: The Mohali municipal corporation has constituted its finance and contract committee (F&CC), the panel empowered to approve civic tenders worth up to Rs 1 crore. However, its formation has sparked a political row, with the Congress objecting to the exclusion of opposition councillors from the committee.The newly formed panel comprises mayor Sarabjit Singh Samana as chairman, municipal commissioner Sundeep Singh Garha, chief engineer Naresh Batta, ward no. 3 councillor Gurmeet Kaur and ward no. 29 councillor Ramanpreet.The committee recently held its inaugural meeting and is expected to begin scrutinising and approving development works and contracts falling within its financial powers.Mayor Samana said the committee had been constituted as per prescribed norms and would take decisions on tenders worth up to Rs 1 crore in accordance with rules and procedures.The Congress, however, criticised the composition of the panel, alleging that the ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) ignored its demand for representation in the committee.Leader of opposition and Congress councillor Narpinder Singh Rangi said the mayor had rejected the party’s request to include at least one opposition councillor. “It appears they do not want transparency in the functioning of the committee. We strongly oppose the decision to restrict its membership to AAP councillors,” he said.Rangi also accused AAP of changing its stand after coming to power. He claimed that AAP leaders had previously criticised the absence of opposition members in the F&CC during the Congress rule and questioned the panel’s powers to clear works worth up to Rs 1 crore.The F&CC is among the municipal corporation’s most important statutory committees, responsible for clearing civic contracts and development works. While the ruling party maintains that the panel has been constituted in line with norms, the opposition has indicated it will continue raising the issue in future house meetings.
