Thane property tax hike sparks demand for live telecast of civic body meetings

Opposition parties and BJP leaders have renewed a demand for live telecasting Thane Municipal Corporation (TMC) General Body meetings after the civic body approved a property tax hike last week without debate. The August 17 meeting also passed a resolution to set up a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) for cluster development. NCP (SP) Thane president Manoj Pradhan alleged that important proposals were being passed without discussion and that the ruling party wanted to hide information from the public.

Thane deputy mayor Krishna Patil said the TMC should be treated like other civic bodies that already broadcast their proceedings. Thane Congress chief Rahul Pingale supported the demand, arguing that residents should not have to rely on media reports to know what their elected representatives did. The BMC and the Maharashtra legislature are currently telecast live, but the TMC has so far resisted similar transparency measures.