Centre delaying proposal to divide UP, says UP CM

 Addressing a press conference here, she accused the Centre of not taking a call on the issue and said, “It appears that the Centre, instead of taking action on the proposal for the division of the State sent to it by the State government, is wanting to keep it pending and that is why such letters are being sent”.

She denied that the Centre had returned the proposal to the State. Charging the UPA government with ‘leaking’ the letter to the media before it was received by the State government, she said that the former was trying to prove that there were “shortcomings in the proposal sent by the State government”.

“Only Parliament can pass a bill seeking division of a state...the state does not have any role in this regard..if the Centre wanted any additional information, it should have communicated to the State government through the president,” she said. She added that the “will of the UP Assembly carries no meaning for the Centre”.

Mayawati said that the State government would reply to the Centre's letter after recieving it. She hoped that the Centre would not create unnecessary hurdles in the way of the proposal sent and would take speedy action.