Madurai, July 30: A stormy session of the Madurai Corporation council meeting took place today, presided over by Mayor Indrani, as AIADMK councilors, clad in black, vociferously demanded her immediate resignation amidst allegations of property tax fraud and irregularities.The meeting, which saw the presence of Commissioner Chithra Vijayan, Deputy Mayor Nagarajan, and councilors from various parties including DMK, AIADMK, MDMK, and BJP, notably lacked the attendance of five zonal chairpersons and two standing committee chairpersons who had recently resigned their positions over the property tax irregularities.
As the session commenced, AIADMK councilors, led by opposition leader Solaiaja, along with Shanmugavalli, Paikara Karuppusamy, Rubini Kumar, Nagajothi, Ravi, and Mayathevan, rose to their feet, chanting slogans demanding the Mayor’s resignation. This immediately met with opposition from DMK councilors, leading to chaos and commotion at the start of the council meeting.
The AIADMK councilors, under Solaiaja’s leadership, then moved to the center of the council hall, staging a sit-in protest and intensifying their demands for the Mayor’s resignation. This escalated into heated arguments with DMK councilors.
Mayor Indrani intervened, stating that the forum was meant for discussing public issues and advised the AIADMK members to pursue their legal case in court rather than engaging in “hypocritical drama” in the council. Her remarks were met with strong opposition from the AIADMK councilors, while DMK councilors rallied in support of the Mayor, further fueling the tense atmosphere.
Following the continued uproar, Mayor Indrani ordered the council security to immediately remove the protesting AIADMK councilors. Police personnel then entered the chamber and escorted the AIADMK councilors out.
Outside the council hall, the expelled AIADMK members continued their protests, raising slogans against the Mayor and condemning the DMK government.
Opposition leader Solaiaja reiterated that the zonal chairpersons involved in the property tax irregularities had only resigned their posts and called for legal action against them.
He also emphasized that since Mayor Indrani had also been questioned in connection with the property tax irregularities, she too should immediately resign from her position.
Meanwhile, during the meeting, several resolutions were passed, including the acceptance of the resignations of zonal chairpersons Vasuki, Suvitha, Pandiselvi, Shanmuga Bhuvaneswari, Mukesh Sharma, and standing committee chairpersons Moovendiran and Vijayalakshmi, which was approved by Corporation Commissioner Chithra Vijayan.