Councillor’s report card: Made little change on the ground
One of the two Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) members to make it to the House in 2011, Naresh Kumar remained a fairly poor performer. This is even as the major parties — Congress and the BJP — ‘fervently wooed’ him and the second councillor Jannat Jahan before the annual mayoral elections.
One of the two Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) members to make it to the House in 2011, Naresh Kumar remained a fairly poor performer. This is even as the major parties — Congress and the BJP — ‘fervently wooed’ him and the second councillor Jannat Jahan before the annual mayoral elections.
Residents of the relatively less affluent area that he represents have been upset at his inability to positively impact any of the basic problems endemic to his ward --- poor sanitation, non-functional streetlights and erratic water supply.
Not only did he not deliver on the ground, he also failed to raise the voice of ward in the House.
Now, in the Congress after having left the BSP in September — the party claims he would have been expelled anyway for anti-party activities, he did not raise any issue in the House over the past four-and-a-half-years, despite representing a population of nearly 26,000.
Of 48 House meetings since 2012, he missed nine and did not attend a single meeting of any committee.
Area residents claim that the condition of green belts in the area is poor, garbage lifting is not regular, and crime and road mishaps kill many because of non-functional streetlights, and water-logging occurs during monsoons.
Kumar, however, is quick to claim all residents’ claims as opposition propaganda, but does not offer verifiable specifics.
Tomorrow: Ward 20 Satish Kainth