New Delhi: Attacking Mayawati for proposing
division of Uttar Pradesh ahead of polls, Union Minister
Pradeep Kumar Jain Aditya on Friday accused the chief minister of
trying to deflect people's attention from the "biggest" issue
of "loot" of public funds in MNREGA and NRHM in the state.
Terming the BSP supremo's proposal to divide the state as
a "political stunt", he asked why no action was taken by the
Mayawati Government on the issue during the last five years.
Jain, who is the Minister of State for Rural Development
and hails from Uttar Pradesh, also came down heavily on the UP
Government over irregularities in implementation of MNREGA
programme and wondered why the Chief Minister did not give her
nod for CBI inquiry.
He said the second letter written by his senior Minister
Jairam Ramesh demanding CBI probe on the issue "reflects the
seriousness of the violation" of rules and siphoning of funds
meant for the rural poor.
"Be it MNREGA or NRHM (National Rural Health Mission),
the loot of funds is going on in UP and this is the biggest
issue. If the state should be divided why no action was taken
on the proposal pending before assembly for last five years.
This is an attempt to deflect people's attention," he told
reporters here.
"It's an election stunt. When she feels election is just
round the corner, she talks about state's division and raises
other issues," Jain said.
Justifying Ramesh's letter, the Jhansi MP said, "Since
the letter has been written for the second time, it reflects
the seriousness of the violation. But state government's
policy is not good and it is her responsibility to give the
nod for CBI probe."
"Constitutionally it is the state's responsibility.... UP
is biggest state in the country and the execution of this
plan should happen there properly transparently and without
corruption," he said on the sidelines of a function
inaugurated by Ramesh, who did not speak to the media on the
issue.
"The basic purpose of writing the letter is that the state
government should definitely probe and take action against
erring officials and show that UP, which is the biggest
country, is implementing MNREGA in a transparent manner and
wants to reach it to all villages," Jain said.
Asked why UP is being singled out when corruption is in
other states also, he said, "Be it UP or some other states,
wherever complaints of irregularities have been found, such
letters have been written without any political bias."
"I personally went to UP and toured many districts. Our
officers also have also seen many things. UP is the biggest
state of the country, where 1/6 population of the country
resides.... UP government should immediately take cognisance
of it," he said.
He also said the kind of irregularities noticed in UP, do
not exist in any other state.
"If there are irregularities which even the state
government has also accepted, then why action is not taken
against guilty officials."
In UP, the operational guidelines for the scheme were
implemented in very few districts.
"People are migrating because the government there is
interested only in minting money. Government's job was to
protect land and give employment to people but the government
there is now engaged in acquiring land and selling it to
property dealers," he alleged.
PTI
First Published: Friday, November 18, 2011, 18:43