UP Governor V Rajeswar has declined to accord sanction for prosecution of Mayawati and her cabinet colleague Nasimuddin Siddique in the Rs 175 crore case.
LUCKNOW: In a big reprieve for Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati, Governor T V Rajeswar has refused to give sanction to prosecute her in the Rs.175 crore Taj Heritage corridor case in which the BSP supremo is among the six key accused.
The decision of the governor, who is the competent authority, was submitted by the CBI today before a designated court which is hearing the case relating to the now shelved move to build a corridor on the banks of Yamuna river near Taj Mahal in Agra in 2002.
Mayawati's cabinet colleague Naseemuddin Siddique was also spared with the governor not giving the sanction orders.
According to sources, the governor did not find enough evidence to give his nod for sanction.
The CBI said it had received the governor's order made on June 3 in which he has declined to accord sanction to prosecute Mayawati and Siddique for offences under different sections of the Indian Penal Code.
The investigating agency, in an application filed before the designated court on Tuesday, said that it had sought sanction to prosecute Mayawati, Siddique, former environment secretary R K Sharma and undersecretary R Prasad from the competent authority.
The agency said that the sanction was sought under section 19 (1) of the Prevention of Corruption act 1988 and section 197 of the CrPC. It said the sanction in respect of Sharma and Prasad was still awaited.
The governor's order came exactly three weeks after Mayawati became the Chief Minister for the fourth time after leading her BSP to a thumping victory in the assembly elections. The previous Mulayam Singh Yadav government had passed on the files regarding CBI seeking sanction for prosecution of Mayawati to the governor on the day of counting of votes.
The denial of sanction to prosecute Mayawati and Siddique would effectively mean that the designated court would not be able to take cognisance of the matter.
The designated court, in its order of February 15 last, had given till May 15 to the CBI to obtain sanction for prosecution.
The agency had on May 15 sought adjournment saying that it had not yet received the sanction.
The designated court had observed that in the absence of the sanction to prosecute Mayawati and Siddique, it has no jurisdiction either to take cognisance or proceed further in respect of the two persons.
The hearing of the matter was deferred till July five next after the counsel for one of the accused in the matter--former UP environment secretary R K Sharma sought time to file some court rulings on the CBI's contention challenging his locus standi in the matter.
Special judge (anti-corruption) Rekha Dixit deferred the matter after Sharma's counsel moved an application seeking time to file the rulings on the CBI's reply on his intervention application.
The counsels for the CBI had on May 23 last filed reply on the intervention application of Sharma in which the agency had contested his locus standi in the matter.
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