UP takes serious note of IAS' letter to Mayawati seeking ticket

Lucknow, Sept 13 (UNI) The Uttar Pradesh government has taken a serious note of a letter written by a bureaucrat to BSP supremo Mayawati seeking a ticket from her party to contest the elections, and is contemplating ordering a probe.

The letter, written by Prabhunath Srivas, posted as district magistrate of Banda, is being seen as a gross violation of service conduct rules and a breach of bureaucratic decorum. The serving IAS officer has not only sought a ticket for the coming Assembly elections from the Bahujan Samaj Party but has also unwittingly exposed bureaucrat-politician relationships in UP.

State Agriculture minister Ashok Bajpai told reporters that the matter was serious. If the letter was genuine, then the matter was ''very serious'' and the government should go for an intense probe into the issue Sources in the Uttar Pradesh government, said the state government was indeed contemplating a probe into the matter.

In the letter written to BSP president Mayawati, the fficial requested the former chief minister to give him an Assembly ticket from Nareni or Konch Assembly segments in the Bundelkhand region in the coming assembly elections.

''I am retiring from service in February 2007 and I want to contest the elections. I have already contacted Mr Naseemuddin Siddiqui and Mr Babu Singh Khushwaha (both former BSP ministers) and have given them arthik sahyog (financial cooperation) as directed by you. In future too, I will be ready to extend financial cooperation as per your directives,'' Mr Srivas said in the letter, which is dated August 16, 2006 and has been sent on his official letterhead.

The issue is set to rock the state legislature which meets tomorrow in the ongoing Monsoon session. The Opposition said it would raise the issue in Zero Hour.

UNI MB NAB PA VC1850