Spend more on people than statues, Congress tells Mayawati

September 18th, 2009 NEW DELHI - The Congress Friday condemned Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati's comment that any attempt to demolish Dalit icons' statues will lead to a law and order situation, and said she "mocks the Constitution and challenges the Supreme Court". (The) Congress party would like to condemn the Uttar Pradesh chief minister's statement where she has openly, in a manner, called for civil war, party spokesman Manish Tewari told reporters.

August 5th, 2009 NEW DELHI - The Congress party Wednesday said that Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati is insensitive to the suffering of the people of the state where 58 of 71 districts have been declared drought-hit. "Mayawati government is insensitive to the problems of farmers and common people of the state where people are facing hardships because of drought, Congress spokesperson Shakeel Ahmad told IANS.

August 3rd, 2009 LUCKNOW - Unfazed by the criticism over its statue-erecting spree, the Mayawati government of Uttar Pradesh has sought the assembly sanction for an additional Rs.556 crore (Rs.5.56 billion) for the projects, and in contrast sought just Rs.250 crore to deal with the prevailing drought in the state. Over the years, Rs.5,000 crore have been allocated towards Chief Minister Mayawati's dream projects since the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) came to power in May 2007.

July 18th, 2009 LUCKNOW - Continuing the verbal sparring with the Congress, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati Saturday hit out at Congress general secretary Rahul Gandhi for his comments against her government, saying the Congress should "first set its own house in order before accusing others". On Rahul Gandhi's support for the Congress' state chief Rita Bahuguna Joshi, who was arrested and sent to judicial custody for her remark against the chief minister, Mayawati said it would have been better if Rahul Gandhi had commented instead on Joshi's book criticising Congress leaders.

July 17th, 2009 LUCKNOW - Congress general secretary Rahul Gandhi Friday held Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati responsible for the poor power supply in his parliamentary constituency of Amethi, while remaining silent over remarks against the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) supremo that have landed his party's state chief in jail on charges of denigrating Dalits. Addressing a gathering in Amethi, Gandhi slammed Mayawati for allegedly misusing developmental funds by installing statues and setting up memorials in the state, and appealed to the people to from a Congress government in Uttar Pradesh.

July 17th, 2009 LUCKNOW - Congress general secretary Rahul Gandhi blamed Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati for the poor power supply in his parliamentary constituency of Amethi, while remaining silent over remarks against the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief that have landed his party's state chief in jail on charges of denigrating Dalits. Addressing a gathering in Amethi, Gandhi slammed Mayawati for allegedly misusing developmental funds by installing statues in the state.

July 16th, 2009 NEW DELHI - Congress President Sonia Gandhi expressed regret over the remarks made by UP Congress chief Rita Bahuguna Joshi against Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati, but at the same time described the actions of the Uttar Pradesh Government as high handed. Earlier in the day, Mayawati condemned Gandhi for remaining silent on the Joshi incident, and said it was shameful that she had not taken any action against Joshi.

July 10th, 2009 LUCKNOW - The Congress party in Uttar Pradesh Friday accused Chief Minister Mayawati of stalling the establishment of the Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Petroleum Technology (RGIPT) in Rae Bareli, a pet project of party president Sonia Gandhi. "Mayawati is unnecessarily delaying the land acquisition exercise meant for setting up the RGIPT in Rae Bareli, owing to which nearly 95 acres of land is yet to be transferred to the institute," state Congress president Rita Bahuguna Joshi told reporters at a press conference here.

July 1st, 2009 LUCKNOW - Seeking to justify use of state funds in erecting statues of Dalit icons in the state capital, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati Wednesday said the money earned from visitors to the memorials would be put to good use. "Since the monuments built to commemorate our ideologues would eventually come up as attractive tourist spots and would naturally make a lot of earnings through entry fee, I have decided to use all the gate money towards development of villages named after Babasaheb Ambedkar and Kanshi Ram," Mayawati told reporters here.

July 1st, 2009 LUCKNOW - Seeking to justify use of nearly Rs.3,200 crore (Rs.3.2 billion) of public funds for building grandiose memorials and statues of Dalit icons, including of herself, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati Wednesday said the money earned from tourists visiting the spots will be used for development. "Since the monuments built to commemorate our ideologues would eventually come up as attractive tourist spots and would naturally make a lot of earnings through entry fee, I have decided to use all the gate money towards development of villages named after Babasaheb Ambedkar and Kanshi Ram," Mayawati told reporters.

June 30th, 2009 LUCKNOW - Defending Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati against the Congress' criticism, her confidant and Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) national general secretary Satish Chandra Misra Tuesday reiterated that the drive to build memorials and install statues of Dalit icons would not affect the state's welfare schemes. "While undertaking the construction of memorials and statues, we are not in any way compromising with the programmes meant for the development of the state or for the upliftment of the poor," Misra said in a release issued by the state information department.

June 30th, 2009 NEW DELHI - The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Tuesday urged the Election Commission to serve a notice to Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati for using public money to install statues, including of herself, in Lucknow. "We request the Election Commission to serve a notice to Mayawati on the issue.

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 25th, 2009 LUCKNOW - Prompted allegedly by a petition in the Supreme Court, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati Thursday night surprised many and unveiled as many as 15 projects, including memorials and statues eight days before the schedule. Officials admitted that the unveiling ceremony was to take place July 3 but Mayawati changed the schedule as Delhi-based lawyer Ravi Kant filed a public interest litigation in the apex court seeking to prevent her from inaugurating projects.

May 11th, 2009 NEW DELHI - Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati continues to shun the media as much as she avoids any direct contact with the public. A leading media baron-cum-celebrated journalist moved heaven and earth to get an appointment with Mayawati but to no avail.