Lucknow, March 3
In a dramatic turn of events, the Samajwadi Party today presented a video cassette and a compact disc (CD) to the Governor, Mr Vishnu Kant Shastri, showing Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati openly asking for money from her legislators for the party fund.

The SP delegation, led by its state general secretary Shivpal Singh Yadav, asked the Governor to immediately lodge a complaint against the Chief Minister and dismiss her government as “she had failed to protect public money.”

Mr Yadav later told reporters here that the CD clearly showed that Ms Mayawati had asked her legislators to donate money for the party fund from their Vidhayak Nidhi (legislator’s fund).

He said Ms Mayawati had reportedly told in the CD that “ an honest legislator earns Rs 5 lakh annually from the Vidhayak Nidhi and she had information that some of the legislators were earning more than Rs 25 lakh”.

“From Vidhayak Nidhi, you (legislators) should donate at least Rs 2 lakh for the party fund during the birthday bash,” Ms Mayawati reportedly told her BSP legislators in a meeting held just before her birthday celebrations on January 15.

Mr Yadav said the way the Chief Minister had asked her legislators to misuse the public fund, which was meant for development, and use the same for the party was tantamount to criminal neglect and the Governor should file a case of corruption against the Chief Minister.