The Supreme Court on Tuesday reserved its verdict on Bahujan Samaj Party supremo Mayawati's plea challenging a Central Bureau of Investigation probe against her in an alleged disproportionate assets case. A bench headed by P Sathasivam reserved its order after a two-hour-long hearing during which the former Uttar Pradesh chief minister attacked the CBI for "fixing" the disproportionate assets case against her, a charge refuted by the agency.
Mayawati, who has raised the pitch for the dismissal of the 41-month-old government, described the move as a mark of protest against the speaker's continued recognition of the BSP's 37 defectors as members of the ruling Samajwadi Party.
Leader of the Opposition Arun Jaitley, Bahujan Samaj Party supremo Mayawati, Union ministers Vilasrao Deshmukh and Rajeev Shukla, and Telugu superstar Chiranjeevi and actor Jaya Bachchan were among the 50 new members who took oath in the Rajya Sabha on Tuesday.
While reserving the verdict, the Bench also comprising Justices H K Sema, A R Lakshmanan, P K Balasubramaniyan and D K Jain, asked the contesting parties to file written submissions by Friday.
The Bharatiya Janata Party accused the Congress-led regime of using the Central Bureau of Investigation as a "Damocles' sword" against vulnerable opposition leaders.
The occasion, which brought Yadav, a former chief minister, and the Bahujan Samaj Party supremo together was a meeting convened to finalise nominees for the State Human Rights Commission. The arch rivals had parted ways following the collapse of their coalition government in 1995 and have been bitter critics attacking each other and rarely acknowledging even the presence of the other at public functions.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati on Thursday issued orders for the arrest of Bahujan Samaj Party member of Parliament Purshottam Naresh Dwivedi and his three aides after the Crime Branch submitted its preliminary report confirming that they gang raped a 17-year-old Dalit girl in Banda, about 180 km from Lucknow.
The state government announced the formation of a two-member judicial enquiry committee to probe the encounter in Jhansi.
While the CPI-M delegation watched a demonstration on the various security checks involved with the machines, the NCP team interacted with Commission's technical committee of experts.
Delhi Police is investigating the role of a "spiritual guru" who is suspected to have hired shooters for Rs 50 lakh to Rs 1 crore to kill local Bahujan Samaj Party leader Deepak Bhardwaj even as they are trying to unravel the "complex web of conspirators".
Two suspected killers of local Bahujan Samaj Party leader Deepak Bhardwaj were arrested on Monday amid high drama when they came to surrender with one of them being caught before he could enter a court in New Delhi.
He is the fourth chief minister from the saffron party to head the northern state. Before Adityanath, Kalyan Singh, Ram Prakash Gupta and Rajnath Singh of the BJP had served as Uttar Pradesh chief ministers.
Former Uttar Pradesh minister Babu Singh Kushwaha has alleged that he was "tortured" in the Central Bureau of Investigation custody during interrogations. "The CBI tortured us during interrogations for ten days," said the sacked Bahujan Samaj Party minister, while he along with another accused, former BSP MLA Ram Pratap Jaiswal, were being taken to Dasna prison on Tuesday.
The Communist Party of India expressed confidence that the ten-party grouping consisting of the Left, Bahujan Samaj Party and the United Nationalist Progressive Alliance may soon emerge as "a real alternative" to the Congress and Bharatiya Janata PartyCPI general secretary A B Bardhan said.
A special Central Bureau of Investigation court in Ghaziabad on Tuesday remanded former Uttar Pradesh minister Babu Singh Kushwaha and former Bahujan Samaj Party Member of Legislative Assembly Ram Pratap Jaiswal in judicial custody for 14 days in the multi-crore National Rural Health Mission scam.
Three persons were taken into custody on Thursday by a Delhi police team in Haryana's Jind district in connection with the murder of Bahujan Samaj Party leader and real estate tycoon Deepak Bhardwaj.
The Election Commission on Saturday asked the Uttar Pradesh government to uncover statues of Chief Minister Mayawati and of elephants, the Bahujan Samaj Party's poll symbol, in the state. "The EC secretary has written a letter to the UP chief secretary stating that the statues draped following its January 7 order should be uncovered forthwith," said UP Chief Electoral Officer Umesh Sinha.
The Central Bureau of Investigation on Saturday arrested former Uttar Pradesh family welfare minister Babu Singh Kushwaha and Bahujan Samaj Party Member of Legislative Assembly Ram Prasad Jaiswal. Incidentally, the agency arrested the two leaders, who have been under its scanner for their role in the Rs 8,000 crore National Rural Health Mission scam, minutes after the seventh and last phase of state elections came to an end.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati held an emergency meeting of senior government officials in Lucknow on Tuesday night after a blast shook the temple town of Varanasi killing a child and injuring 20 people.
Leaders of the Left parties, the Bahujan Samaj Party and the Telugu Desam Party will meet President Pratibha Patil on Tuesday to demand immediate convening of Parliament session. The meeting comes in the wake of the Left demand that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh should quit for "lying to people and Parliament" on the Indo-US nuclear deal.
SP leaders could be behind the sting operation: Mayawati
After a year of docility, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav seems to be in an assertive mood once again. But will the newfound confidence sustain, wonders Sharat Pradhan
Bahujan Samaj Party chief Mayawati on Sunday alleged the law and order situation in Uttar Pradesh is deteriorating under Samajwadi Party rule and people will realise that a "bad government" has come to power in the state.
Massive turnout to rallies an indication that the Bahujan Samaj Party will return to power says UP Chief Minister Mayawati. Sharat Pradhan report.
Facing strident demands for the arrest of Raghuraj Pratap Singh alias Raja Bhaiya booked in the DSP murder case, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav on Wednesday promised to take action against those found guilty.
