It is now UP sports minister Ayodhya Prasad Pal who is facing the Lokayukta scanner for corruption charges.
The Lokayukta office has received a complaint from one Bhanu Pratap Singh of Faizabad who has accused the minister of corruption in the construction of an international stadium in Faizabad district.
According to the complainant, the sports minister had a nexus with former sports director Hari Om and former project manager R.D. Prasad and had deliberately delayed the construction of the `86 crore Dr Bhim Rao Ambedkar stadium, paving the way for an escalation of costs to `150 crore.
In an affidavit submitted to the Lokayukta, the petitioner said that the government organisation constructing the stadium has also commented that the functioning of the sports minister was the reason behind the delay in the project and its cost escalation.
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Gadkari: i’m not in race for prime minister
AGE CORRESPONDENT
lucknow, Oct. 30
BJP president Nitin Gadkari has denied that he is in the race for the Prime Minister’s post.
Addressing the concluding session of the BJP’s state executive meeting in Kushinagar here on Sunday, the BJP president said, “I have been asked if I am in the race for the Prime Minister’s job and I have denied it. All my life I have closely watched leaders who rose above personal aspirations and dedicated their lives for the cause of the people and I want to follow in their footsteps.”