Rs 20 lakh worth cars for UP MLAs, 67% are crorepatis: Rpt

, Jul 5: Of the 403 MLAs in Uttar Pradesh, 271 (67%) are crorepatis, according to an analysis by a NGO. The news comes at the backdrop of Chief Minister

's proposal to dole out cars worth Rs 20 lakh for each MLA in the state.

Defending his stand, Akhilesh Yadav said, "I take back the decision. The reason for this is that most of the MLAs have decided not to take the offer after media criticism."

"I felt that since MLAs have to move constantly, a vehicle will help them visit remote areas and monitor development effectively. But the media painted the decision as if it was against the public interest," he said. He further said that the decision was not taken in the right mood by people. [Read More: The Best Car Choices For UP MLAs]

The analysis by the NGO paints a different picture. According to the analysis, only 6 MLAs have declared their assets less than Rs 5 lakh. Throwing light on the parties, the average assets for every candidate of Samajwadi Party is 2.52 crore, for BJP it is Rs 4.01 crore, for BSP it is 4.44 crore and for Congress it is Rs 4.61 crore.

The Chief Minister further said that many MLAs told him that their vehicles were at least 7-8 years old and no longer in a condition to run for long distances. He said, it was after the media highlighted the whole issue in a negative light, the legislators refused to buy a car with the area development fund.

Welcoming the move, BSP's leader of opposition Swami Prasad Maurya said, "This and his earlier decision to shut malls at 7 pm show that the CM is immature." He said the real force behind the rollback were the ministers.

"By taking the decision back, the government has shown it has the courage to rectify a wrong as everyone said it would not send a good message," said Akhilesh Pratap Singh of Congress.

OneIndia News