Mayawati expels party leader for questioning installation of statues

August 3rd, 2009 LUCKNOW - Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati on Monday demanded for a budget of Rs 27 crore for statues at the Kashiram memorial and for other structures in the state. Presenting the supplementary budget, she demanded for an additional Rs 550 crore for her dream projects, which includes Rs 27 crore for new statues.

July 25th, 2009 NEW DELHI - Former Chief Justice of India JS Verma has expressed surprise at Supreme Court's decision of not intervening into the statue issue involving Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati. "If judiciary can go into the decision of cabinet pertaining to article 356 (in S R Bommai case) and judicial review is available to check the ultra vires of constitutional amendment, then I fail to understand why it cannot go into the statue issue," Justice Verma said.

July 17th, 2009 AMETHI - Congress party general secretary Rahul Gandhi on Friday told reporters at a impromptu press conference here that remarks made by Uttar Pradesh Congress unit chief Rita Bahuguna Joshi against state Chief Minister Mayawati were unfortunate, but at the same time understandable because of the lack of development in the state. "The words uttered by Mrs.Joshi are unfortunate, but the UP Government's action against her (Joshi) is also unfortunate.

July 17th, 2009 AMETHI - Accusing Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati of misusing government funds, Congress Party General Secretary Rahul Gandhi on Friday said Uttar Pradesh has place for only statues and elephants but not for the issues related to development of the state. Addressing Congress workers here, Gandhi said: "Mayawati only has time to erect statues and nothing else.

July 11th, 2009 NEW DELHI - Ministry of Environment and Forest has sought an explanation from Uttar Pradesh government over alleged violation of environmental laws in construction of a park in NOIDA Uttar Pradesh Government is constructing Memorial Park in 33-hectare area along the Yamuna Riverbed in Sector 15 -A of NOIDA. State government is installing statues of Chief Minister Mayawati, her political mentor Kanshi Ram, and Dr B.

June 29th, 2009 SIVAGANGA - Union Home Minister P. Chidamabaram has severely criticized Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati for constructing and inaugurating statues of her Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) symbol - the elephant-of herself and of Dalit leaders of yore.

June 29th, 2009 NEW DELHI - The Congress party on Monday said the money used for installing statues of Dalit icons by Uttar Pradesh's Chief Minister Mayawati could have been used for upliftment of the poor and backwards in the state. Stating that the party was not against installing statues of national heroes, Congress said, but it was against "overdoing" it.

June 27th, 2009 NEW DELHI - Congress and Bharatiya Janata Party on Saturday criticised Samajwadi Party President Mulayam Singh Yadav's comments that he would bulldoze all the memorials eructed by Mayawati government in Uttar Pradesh. "As far as Mulayam Singh Yadav's statement that we will run a bulldozer on the constructions, we are not in favour of this culture.

June 26th, 2009 LUCKNOW - Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati is facing flak from Congress leader Digvijay Singh and Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav for unveiling a series of statues, memorials and parks across the state. He said this while speaking to media persons at New Delhi on Friday.

June 24th, 2009 LUCKNOW - Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister, Mayawati, will unveil 40 statues, including six of her own, in the state on July 3. The statues will be unveiled along with the Kanshi Ram Memorial and the Gautam Buddhasthals.

May 19th, 2009 LUCKNOW - Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) supremo and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati Tuesday announced that her party's 21 MPs will extend outside support to the new United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government at the centre. That means the new government will be comfortably ahead of the halfway mark in parliament.

May 19th, 2009 LUCKNOW - Further strengthening the stability to the new United Progressive Alliance (UPA) Government, Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) Chief and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati on Tuesday said that her party would give outside support to the Congress-led alliance without any condition. Mayawati further said that her party has agreed to provide outside support of all 21 MPs to the UPA Government without any condition.

May 18th, 2009 LUCKNOW - Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) party chief and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati Monday asked for the resignation of over 50 party leaders heading various corporations, official sources said. After becoming chief minister in 2007, Mayawati had given plum postings to several of her party leaders, with many given red-beacon cars and enjoying facilities and perks given to ministers of state.

April 17th, 2009 LUCKNOW - Samajwadi Party Rajya Sabha MP Banwari Lal Kanchal and his supporters Friday joined the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) here in the presence of Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister and party chief Mayawati. Kanchal, who is the chief of Uttar Pradesh Udyog Vyapar Pratinidhi Mandal - the traders' wing of the Samajwadi Party - told reporters that he decided to join the BSP after finding his own party oppressing businessmen.

April 3rd, 2009 SAHARANPUR/MUMBAI - Newly appointed general secretary of Samajwadi Party (SP) Sanjay Dutt slammed Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati for not utilising the funds available with the State for the welfare of the people. "When I came to Lucknow, I saw statues all around and I was told by one that all these were statues of Mayawati.