Peaceful protest: Congress leader gifts bathroom door to CMC mayor

Cuttack: Congress leader Manas Choudhury gave a bathroom door to the Cuttack Municipal Corporation (CMC) on Wednesday as a new manner to express his displeasure with the claimed failure of the civic body in the millennium city of Odisha.

The action was taken the day after Mayor Subhash Singh noted, at the CMC council meeting on Tuesday, that the lack of resources prevented the civic organisation from fixing a door in a bathroom.

Asked by opposition corporators about his pledge to complete development projects in several wards, Singh responded that his bathroom door had broken and could not be restored because of a lack of funds.

Members of the district Congress Committee purchased a bathroom door and gave it to the CMC Commissioner as a gift to Singh after his comment went viral. Singh has stated that he cannot afford a door, thus 500 rupees have also been supplied for fitting fees, according to Manas Choudhury, president of the Cuttack District Congress Committee.

He questioned what kind of work a mayor would do for the CMC and the citizens of the city if he couldn't fix the door on his restroom.

When the CMC council met on Tuesday, BJP corporators caused a scene by barging into the room and displaying black flags to the mayor, accusing the civic organisation of failing to carry out development projects in the city before Durga Puja.