Mayawati’s money is the talking point
Mayawati's opponents says that she was benefiting from the double standards that the UPA maintains on corruption, report Srinand Jha and Sutirtho Patranobis.
While Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister and Bahujan Samaj Party chief Mayawati's political allies did not comment on how she had amassed assets worth Rs 52 crore, her opponents said on Tuesday that she was benefiting from the double standards that the UPA maintains on corruption.
Samajwadi Party leader and Rajya Sabha MP Shahid Siddiqui said that being an ally of the UPA, Mayawati could never be "corrupt", while the UPA's political opponents could never be "spotless".
"Mulayam Singh Yadav was branded corrupt. It was a case of political vendetta against him. Anybody with the UPA enjoys immunity," Siddiqui said, adding that by the same standards, an enquiry could be constituted into the source of Mayawati's assets. He also said that the people of the country should ask questions about how she had collected so much wealth.
Senior Telugu Desam Party leader Yerran Naidu, speaking to the Hindustan Times from his constituency Srikakulam in Andhra Pradesh, said people were the best judges in such a case. "If it is revealed that Mayawati amassed the wealth illegally, whenever they get the opportunity, the people will take the correct decision," he said.
Congress spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi, said it was an old case and the Supreme Court was monitoring it on a day-to-day basis. "But to contend that there is a quid pro quo relationship between the Congress and BSP is laughable, incorrect and unfounded," he said.
The Left leaders refused to comment on the issue, though a senior leader, on condition of anonymity, said that Rs 52 crore was just a "tiny fraction" of her actual wealth.