The UP lokayukta, Justice N.K. Mehrotra (Retd), has given a clean chit to BSP supremo Mayawati in the UP memorial scam while her government was in power, but said `1,400 crores was siphoned off by two former ministers, legislators, bureaucrats and technocrats in constructing memorials.
These revelations came after a year-long investigation by the lokayukta into alleged irregularities in construction of parks and memorials under the Mayawati government.
The lokayukta found 199 persons guilty of siphoning off money in the projects, and recommended action against them in a report that he submitted to chief minister Akhilesh Yadav on Monday.
The report says there is clear evidence of commission on the part of the 199 found guilty. He told reporters he had recommended filing of FIRs under the Prevention of Corruption Act and IPC Section 409 (criminal breach of trust by public servant) against 19 persons.
Justice Mehrotra has said FIRs should be filed against former BSP ministers Naseemuddin Siddiqui and Babu Singh Kushwaha, and 30 per cent of the money siphoned off should be recovered from them. The report claimed these two were at the centre of the scam.
He also recommended action against former legislators Sharda Pratap and Anil Maurya and sitting BSP MLA Ramesh Chandra Dubey. Of `4,300 crores spent on constructing memorials, it was found `1,400 crores was embezzled through inflated billing.