The meeting of the Chennai Corporation Council on Wednesday was a short but stormy one. Even as most of the 68 items on the agenda were passed quickly, there was a furore over the permission it had earlier granted for the demolition of Anna Arch. It took statements from a number of councilors and the Mayor himself, for tempers to cool, as they felt that they had been misled over the demolition of the Anna Arch.
In passing Item number 68, the Council had granted permission to the Highways Department to demolish Anna Arch, while preserving and reinstalling the statue of former Chief Minister CN Annadurai.
“When the Council passed the resolution, it was only a commitment for the speedy completion of the project. We were misled. We were under the impression that the flyover project was instituted by the Chief Minister,” said Mayor Saidai S Duraisamy.
“When the Highways Department sought the NOC, they should have given all the details. We were not told evrything. I have asked the Corporation Commissioner to investigate into why the information was not provided to us. We must feel sad and ashamed that we approved the demolition of a monument built by MGR,” Duraisamy added.
Admitting that he and the Council had been fooled, Duraisamy said they should have seen through the sinister design behind the flyover project which, he pointed out, was proposed during the DMK regime.Till he made the statement however, there was mayhem in the house. Some councillors then made speeches thanking the CM for saving the Anna Arch.
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