SC directs UP govt to respond to PIL against Mulayam

New Delhi, Sep 11 (UNI) The Supreme Court today directed the Uttar Pradesh government to respond, within four weeks, to a PIL against former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mulayam Singh Yadav alleging that he had released Rs 60 crore from the Chief Minister's Contingency Fund for a private college owned by his family member, in his home district Etawah.

A bench comprising Chief Justice K G Balakrishnan and Justice P Sathasivam directed the Mayawati government to file its counter within four weeks.

D K Garg, counsel for the petitioner Mahinder Nath Rai, contended before the court that Rs 60 crore was illegally released from the Fund for the college situated in Safai, the native village of Mulayam Singh Yadav, while according to the rules no money can be released from this fund for any commercial venture or purpose.

Responding to the plea of the petitioner that the government be directed to produce the records, the court said the latter would explain everything in its counter evidence.

Samajwadi Party supremo Mulayam Singh and several MPs and MLAs of his party have also been facing allegations of misusing the MPLAD sceme funds in order to promote the family interests of the former state Chief Minister.

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