Mulayam govt. planning politico-bureaucrat nexus

Lucknow, May 4 (UNI) The Congress today alleged that the ruling Samajwadi Party government in Uttar Pradesh was planning to create a ''political-bureaucratic nexus'' by trying to empanel officials with a tainted record.

Talking to reporters here, Union minister and convenor of AICC media management Kapil Sibal alleged that the state government had tried to provide IAS grade to officials who were close to certain ministers and politicians of the SP. ''The Centre has checked the move,'' he added.

He claimed that ideally officials who have directly been recruited as gazetted officers in the provincial services should be empanelled for IAS grade. ''But all those with a tainted record were in the list,'' he alleged.

The Union minister also alleged that fertiliser subsidy scam was one of the examples of how Uttar Pradesh had been ''looted'' by the successive governments since Mr Mulayam Singh Yadav first became the Chief Minister in 1989.

''The systematic loot of Uttar Pradesh is not limited to the scandals that have emerged during Mulayam Singh's regime,'' he said.

Mr Sibal alleged that there was misappropriation of government fund to the tune of Rs 1,000 crores by fertiliser units in Uttar Pradesh between 1994-2000. The loot was carried out by these units by making false claims for subsidies.

During 1994-2000 when the misappropriation took place, Bahujan Samaj Party leader Mayawati was Chief Minister from June 1995-October 1995 and then from March 1997 to September 1997 and BJP Chief Ministers Kalyan Singh from September 1997-November 1999, (late) Ram Prakash Gupta from November 1999 to October 2000 and Rajnath Singh (present BJP Chief) from October 2000 to March 2002.

Under the fertiliser subsidy scheme, 80 per cent of the subsidy was paid by the Centre directly to the fertiliser units upon their making a claim and the balance 20 per cent upon a report submitted by the state government after verifying the claims of the respective units.

The fertiliser units were given subsidy under the scheme for converting Rock Phosphate into Single Super Phosphate (SSP) which was supplied as fertiliser. The units were obtaining subsidy on the strength of fake documents relating to the purchase of rock phosphate and supply of SSP to the Agriculture department.

Following suspicion raised by the Centre over the genuineness of claims for subsidy by fertiliser units, the Uttar Pradesh government had entrusted investigation of the same to a Special Investigating Bureau (SIB) in the Agriculture Cell in March 2000.

UNI