Maya meets PM on Mulayam's confrontation policy

New Delhi, May 26: Declaring that her government would work in tandem with the Centre, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati today urged Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to expedite the state's development plans, which she said had been put on the backburner due to her predecessor Mulayam Singh Yadav's 'confrontational attitude' towards the Centre.

''The state has suffered greatly in the past three years because of the bitter and strained relations with the Centre resulting from Mr Mulayam Singh Yadav's personal and political agenda. I will not now let politics become a stumbling bloc in the state's progress,'' she said.

This was the first time that Ms Mayawati launched a frontal attack on her predecessor, mentioning his name.

Emerging out of her first meeting with Dr Singh after becoming the chief minister of Uttar Pradesh for the fourth time, Ms Mayawati told waiting reporters that she pleaded with the prime minister to convert into soft loan the existing Rs 15,000 crore loan.

She said Dr Singh assured full cooperation to her government's developmental plans, including the revival of the proposed international airport at Jewar near Aligarh - a project that was thrown into the cold storage by the previous Samajwadi Party government.

Describing the 90-minute luncheon meeting at the Prime Minister's 7 Race Course residence as a 'courtesy call'', Ms Mayawati said a wide range of issues also came up for discussions.

The luncheon meeting was later joined in by UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi with whom Ms Mayawati held separate talks yesterday.

The choice of a candidate for the Presidential elections is also believed to have figured at the meeting.

Ms Maywati said she apprised the Prime Minister of the state of affairs in Uttar Pradesh and urged him for central assistance in the projects relating to urban development, tourism, power, fertiliser and also in restoring the fiscal balance. She also demanded that the state be included in the Buddhist circuit plan of the Centre in which the Mulayam Singh government ''had not shown much interest.'' She also told the Prime Minister that all the pending projects of the Jawaharlal Nehru Urban Renewal Mission would be sent to the Centre in an amended form.

The Chief Minister also sought speedy clearance for the coal=based power projects to tide over the power crisis in the state.

''The Prime Minister gave me a patient hearing and also assured of the Centre's all possible help. I hope today's meeting would be greatly help in removing the bitterness that had crept into the relations between the Centre and the state government,'' said Ms Maywati.

UNI