SC to examine legality of Mayawati's Rs2,600 crore statue project

The Mayawati Government's decision to spend a whopping Rs2,600 crore public money for constructing memorials of BSP founder Kanshiram and other Dalit leaders in Lucknow city would come up for scrutiny before a special Bench of the Supreme Court tomorrow.

The Bench of Justices BN Agrawal and Aftab Alam had on September 18 firmly told the state that it would examine the Constitutional validity of the massive project and had expressed dissatisfaction over the claim of the state that it had put on hold the project until restraint order passed by the Bench was vacated.

In a blunt message to the UP government, the court had indicated that it would examine whether the state government can spend huge public money for constructing statues and memorials for political leaders.

"We have to examine whether you can spend so much from the public money. Serious questions arise in this petition," the Bench said adding "the cabinet and the legislature have to act under the Constitution".

The apex court had also expressed dissatisfaction at the affidavit filed by the state which denied that construction activities were in full swing at the project site despite the country's highest court's stay imposed on further construction on an application filed by some persons and an NGO.