MANGALORE: The report that appeared in Karavali Ale, the sister publication of The Canara Times on the diesel scam involving Mayor’s son, rocked the MCC council meeting held on June 22, Tuesday with opposition Congress members demanding a clarification from Mayor Rajani Dugganna.

Raising the matter during zero hour, opposition leader DK Ashok Kumar said the mayor ought to clarify if the media reports on the issue were true. “In case the report is false, then I too will cooperate in filing a defamation case against the newspaper,” he said.

Responding to the demand, former mayor Shanker Bhat said “One has to appreciate the opposition leader’s concern towards the mayor. He had said so even after the incident of stoning my car. Now the allegations against the mayor’s son are false. The mayor’s son was in the hospital owing to ill-health on the day the incident took place” He further accused the Congress hands behind the incident.

“The opposition leader’s ( Ashok Kumar) name was even heard in the case of printing fake dollars and selling the same, during the Congress rule in the MCC,” Shanker Bhat targeted Ashok Kumar by saying so.

This led to another allegation by Ashok Kumar that “Shanker Bhat had even faced the allegation of selling a land to two persons using the records of one land.”

Finally, Mayor Rajani Dugganna drew curtains to the entire clamour by saying “The reports in the media are far from truth.”

Corporator Naveen D’Souza highlighted the problems faced by people in availing occupancy certificates and door numbers. Referring to the oral order issued by urban development minister Suresh Kumar at an earlier meeting that no new door numbers should be issued, he requested that the numbers should be issued by imposing double tax under Section 112. Even Independent Member Mariamma Thomas put forth the same demand. In the meantime, corporator James D’Souza created some confusion in the meeting by going all the way to praise the urban development minister.

When several members pointed out to the number of unauthorized constructions in the city, Commissioner KN Vijayaprakash intervened and said he had already instructed the officials to initiate strict action against all unauthorized constructions.

The meeting also paid tributes to the victims of the May 22 air crash.

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