Mangaluru: Malaria that Hit Mayor Mahabala Marla was No Laughing Matter, or Was it?

Mangaluru: The corridors of the Mangalore City Corporation (MCC) were agog with the news of city mayor Mahabala Marla having had an attack of Malaria since Saturday.

Yet, quite duty-conscious that he is, it appears, he did not want to skip the general meeting of the city council which was scheduled for Monday, Dec 29.

He took part actively in the deliberations. When the business for the day was inching towards its end, the attention invariably turned towards a major health issue rattling the city – the menace of Malaria. When the mayor provided the statistics to the house, some corporators wanted to know if they included the first citizen himself.

Not the one wanting to miss a chance for a dash of humour – at his own expense, though – Marla quipped that he had told the mosquitoes that he was the mayor and hence asked them not to trouble him.

He added that the mosquitoes told him they couldn’t care less what his status was and that everyone was equal in their perspective. And the result was for everyone to see.

The tense atmosphere normally observed in the house cleared for a while and peals of laughter spread around. The mayor managed to create some lighter moments out of his own predicament.

Earlier report:

Mangaluru: First Citizen Suffers Malaria Attack Soon after Briefing about it!