New Delhi:
Rural Development Minister Jairam Ramesh has written to Mayawati, alleging a scam in the implementation of the national rural employment scheme in Uttar Pradesh.
Mr Ramesh, who is the Rural Development Minister, has asked for a CBI inquiry into the alleged financial malpractices in UP linked to the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA).
(Read Full Letter Here)Late in October, Mr Ramesh had sent a similar letter to the UP Chief Minister. He has said that the lack of action taken by the state government suggested that those guilty of embezzling enjoyed political patronage. Mayawati then complained to the Prime Minister, accusing Mr Ramesh of deliberately misrepresenting the facts and her government's alleged stand.
Uttar Pradesh - India's most populous state - votes soon, and the Congress and Mayawati have begun trading accusations about corruption and who is to blame for the glaring absence of development in the state.
Earlier this week, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi launched his party's campaign with a huge rally near Allahabad. His remarks about people from UP having "to beg" for work in Maharashtra and other states spawned a political controversy, mainly over his choice of words. A union minister- Jiten Prasada - and a senior Congress leader from UP, Pramod Tiwari, were seen kicking a student who appeared to be protesting against Mr Gandhi. A case has now been registered against them.
Meanwhile, Mayawati has announced her cabinet has decided to push for UP to be divided into four smaller states - that will help improve governance, she believes. She will move the resolution in the winter session of the UPA Assembly which begins later this month. However, any re-shaping of the state has to be sanctioned through a lengthy and complex process in Parliament.