Despite nod, no FIR against ex-minister

LUCKNOW: Though the state government had given the goahead to the vigilance department in the first week of July to register an FIR against former PWD minister Naseemuddin Siddiqui and former family welfare minister Babu Singh Kushwaha in a disproportionate asset case. Though an FIR was registered against Siddiqui on July 6, such a step is yet to be taken against Kushwaha.

A home department officer said the vigilance department had planned to register three FIRs against Kushwaha in a disproportionate asset (DA) case, allegedly corruption in mining contract and a fake bachelor’s degree case. While the FIRs in the assets and mining cases were to be registered in Banda, the fake degree case was to be registered at Jhansi.

Senior BSP leader Swami Prasad Maurya said there seemed to be a deal between Kushwaha and the SP. The decision to lodge an FIR against Kushwaha had been put on hold as the SP hoped to get political mileage in the election, it was alleged.

Earlier, lokayukta justice (retd) NKMehrotra had recommended a CBI probe against Kushwaha. “I received three complaints regarding asset disproportionate to his known source of income and irregularities in the allotment of plots for mining. The investigation team collected evidence of illegal property and corruption in mining,” he said.