Probe ordered on damage done by Akhilesh, staff at official residence
Lucknow, June 11: The Uttar Pradesh government has ordered a probe into the damages done in the residences of former Chief Ministers Mulayam Singh Yadav and Akhilesh Yadav before they were vacated over the weekend on directives of the Supreme Court, an official said on Monday.
"We have the inventory of these houses and they would be matched with whatever was there at the time the possession was taken back by the Rajya Sampatti Vibhaag.... after a detailed list of the missing items is prepared, notice would be issued and recoveries would be made," a senior Estate Department official told here.
The matching of the items, including lights and other fixtures, would also be done at the residences of former Chief Ministers Kalyan Singh, Mayawati and Rajnath Singh, the official added.
Former Chief Minister Narayan Dutt Tiwari, who is critically ill and admitted at a Delhi hospital, however has not vacated his official residence and his wife has sought one year which has been rejected by the Estate Department. The extended deadline of June 3, given on compassionate grounds, is also over.
Rajya Sampatti Adhikari Yogesh Shukla said that anyone who has damaged government property will not be spared and recoveries will be done as per law.
An Estate Department team, which went on Saturday to the 4, Vikramditya Marg residence allocated to Akhilesh Yadav after he left it, said the former Chief Minister had left the house, built under his watch at a cost of Rs 42 crore, in bad shape.
Officials, accompanied with photographers, got the residence photographed extensively to show the damages done when the property was being vacated. Officials told that barring a marble temple in one corner of the house, the entire house had been damaged.
Expensive floor and wall tiles, lamination, and marble slabs have been damaged beyond repair and the electricity switch boards, switches have also been ripped off, said an official. All the air-conditioning ducts in the centrally air-conditioned house, which was rebuilt and renovated by the then SP government at the fag end of its tenure, have been plucked out, he added.
The all-weather swimming pool has also been filled with sand while the imported tiles it was lined with have all been broken, an official told IANS. Iron angles can be seen protruding at various places and many gates inside the house have also been damaged, they said.
Tiles of the badminton court, as well as the nets have also been ripped off and all the ACs, TV, furniture, and fans have also been shifted out, the official said while pointing out that they will now check the inventory of the stuff sanctioned to him and will cross check it with whatever is left behind.
As soon as pictures of the damaged house came out in the public domain, the BJP and SP leaders engaged in a verbal spat, with several state ministers slamming Akhilesh Yadav for damaging many parts of his house before vacating it "grudgingly".
Transport Minister Swatantra Dev Singh said such damage was "saddening" and in fact was a contempt of the apex court, while BJP spokesman Rakesh Tripathi said the "mindset and the culture" of Akhilesh Yadav had been exposed now.
Samajwadi Party spokesman Rajendra Chowdhary however has denied these charges saying the government has deliberately hatched this conspiracy to defame their party chief.
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Have no personal involvement in Cong’s action against some minority leaders: Shivakumar
Bengaluru (PTI): Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar on Friday said he has no personal involvement in action taken against certain Congress leaders from the minority community following allegations of an internal conspiracy during the recently held Davanagere South bypolls.
He clarified that the decisions were taken by the party high command based on available reports.
Asserting that party discipline is of utmost importance, Shivakumar, who is also the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) president, sought to downplay concerns that action against minority leaders may send the message that “Muslims are being targeted.”
“I don’t have any personal involvement in this. Whatever decisions are taken are made by the party leadership. The party has its own reports. Decisions regarding MLAs or MLCs cannot be taken at the state level without instructions from Delhi,” he said.
Speaking to reporters, he added, “People may blame me; I am not concerned. Everyone must function in accordance with party discipline.”
Responding to concerns within sections of the party that recent actions may convey the impression that minority leaders are being targeted, he said the Congress exists for the welfare of Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, minorities, backward classes, farmers, and all sections of society.
The Congress has suspended MLC K Abdul Jabbar from primary membership and relieved another MLC, Naseer Ahmed, from the post of Chief Minister’s political secretary.
The action followed allegations by a group of Muslim leaders that certain party members conspired to defeat the official candidate in Davanagere South.
Following the action, speculation has emerged that Housing Minister B Z Zameer Ahmed Khan may also face disciplinary measures during the next cabinet reshuffle.
The three leaders had reportedly sought a Muslim candidate for the Davanagere South bypoll ticket, which the party instead allotted to the late MLA Shamanur Shivashankarappa’s grandson, Samarth Mallikarjun.
They were also said to have not actively participated in the campaign.
Shivakumar also rejected claims of factionalism within the ruling party amid speculation that leaders close to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah were being targeted.
Naseer Ahmed and Zameer Ahmed Khan are considered close to the CM.
Rejecting allegations of factionalism within the party, Shivakumar said, “We speak to each other every day. It is the media that creates divisions. Where is my faction? Has anyone put up a board saying they belong to the Siddaramaiah faction? Have I put up any such board?”
“All 139 legislators are my people, and they are all Siddaramaiah’s people as well. Everyone belongs to the Congress,” he added, saying there are no factions within the party and that such claims are media-driven.
Public Works Department (PWD) Minister Satish Jarkiholi met Shivakumar on Friday, a day after expressing concerns that disciplinary action against minority leaders may send the wrong message.
Shivakumar said he discussed with Jarkiholi the need to decongest Bengaluru traffic by diverting vehicles entering the city from state and national highways, along with party-related issues.
“We also discussed political matters in the interest of the party and the need to work together,” he said.
Later, speaking to reporters, Jarkiholi said he discussed with Shivakumar the issue of withdrawing Jabbar’s suspension. He said he will also visit New Delhi next week to meet the high command and discuss state developments.
“Jabbar’s suspension was discussed (with Shivakumar). It should be withdrawn. Let’s issue him a notice and allow him to reply. Then let’s send the report to the high command and seek their approval. High command approval is necessary because the instructions came from there. It may take some time,” he said.
Stating that he met the KPCC chief for “damage control,” the minister said, “We have tried to convince him. Sometimes certain decisions happen that need rectification.”
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