A BJP MLA in Uttar Pradesh's Bijnor called to inaugurate a 7-km road rebuilt at a cost of Rs 1.16 crore found herself in a spot when a coconut-cracking ritual ended up damaging the road instead.
A furious Suchi Mausam Chaudhary, the MLA from Bijnor Sadar constituency, waited on the spot for three hours for a team of officers to arrive and take samples of the road to investigate.
She promised tough action against those responsible and was seen helping dig a wider hole in the spot to help collect the asphalt sample.
"The irrigation department was building a road for Rs 1.16 crore. The road is around 7.5 km long. I was asked to inaugurate the road. When I got there and tried to break a coconut, the coconut did not break. Bits of the road came off," she told reporters.
The MLA has promised tough action against those responsible
"I had it checked and found the construction to be deficient. The work was not up to the standard. We stopped the inauguration. I spoke to the District Magistrate. The DM formed a three-member team. The material was sent for sampling and we were there for almost three hours," Ms Chaudhary said.
"Action will be taken against those responsible... they will face strict action. The DM has assured me that the road will be built to spec," she added.
The road was being constructed by the irrigation department for Rs 1.16 crore
The executive engineer of the irrigation department of Bijnor, Vikas Agarwal, however, denied any corruption, saying, "That's not true. We have asked the District Magistrate to investigate so that there are no misconceptions."
The incident comes as a major embarrassment for the BJP government less than three months before state elections in which an efficient and corruption-free administration has been Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath's main pitch.
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