Lucknow:
The death of yet another key accused in Uttar Pradesh's multi-crore health scam has sparked off a political blame-game. After Chief Minister Mayawati yesterday blamed the National Rural Health Mission swindle as part of a larger political controversy, the Congress has hit back, asking her why she shunted out ministers from her government if there was no irregularity.
"If there was no scam, why would she make her ministers resign? Central government keeps releasing money on the basis of provisional bills and invoices. The final auditing takes time. The CBI has carried out investigations for over a year...," Congress spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi said.
The Congress' counter-attack was clearly aimed at the sacking of Babu Singh Kushwaha, who was the former Minister of Family Welfare in Mayawati's government. During his tenure, the department was riddled with corruption and crime - two senior doctors affiliated to his department were murdered; another was found dead in a Lucknow jail in mysterious circumstances. Mr Kushwaha was later removed by Mayawati and was accepted by the BJP a few weeks ago, a decision that backfired with many senior party leaders objecting to his entry. His membership of the BJP has since been suspended.
The suicide of an officer Sunil Verma yesterday, the fourth such case linked to the NRHM swindle, prompted Mayawati to allege that the Congress-led UPA government was responsible for the massive financial irregularities that plagued the NRHM scheme in the state. Putting the onus squarely on the Centre which handled the funds that were released for the scheme, she said, "NRHM is an independent department. Why did they (the Centre) keep releasing money if there was wrongdoing?"
She also added that she did not see her Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) suffering for this politically. The UPA government launched its flagship National Rural Health Mission in 2005. Uttar Pradesh was the largest beneficiary.
The confrontation between the Congress and the BSP comes at a time when the state is gearing up for the crucial assembly polls. The death of Mr Verma, an officer among those accused of stealing crores worth of NRHM funds, has further added to Mayawati's woes. Mr Verma died after he shot himself in the head in his government flat in Lucknow.
A suicide note has been found, police said. The note, purportedly written by Mr Verma, said that he had done no wrong while implementing schemes under his department; but the CBI raided him, he was depressed and had decided to kill himself. The note found says no one is to blame for his death. The police is treating the official's death prima facie as a suicide.
Mr Verma worked as a Project Manager with the construction and design service of the UP Jal Nigam, one of the departments involved in implementing the National Rural Health Mission Scheme. The CBI is investigating a maze of officials and politicians who allegedly colluded to steal close to 5000 crores sent by the Centre to provide accessible and affordable health services to the poorest households in the remotest regions. Mr Verma's department is allegedly accountable for the misuse of 500 crores.