Monuments in focus

There was much speculation over the weekend relating to the decision of the Yogi Adityanath government in Uttar Pradesh to accept a request from former Chief Minister Mayawati to repair monuments and parks built when she was in power. The Bahujan Samaj Party chief had written similar letters to the earlier government led by Samajwadi Party's Akhilesh Yadav, but her demand was ignored. While the BJP had earlier alleged that Rs 4,500 crore was wasted in the construction of monuments and parks in Lucknow and Noida when Mayawati ruled Uttar Pradesh, why did it change its stance? Critics point to the outcome of the recent Gujarat polls that suggest BSP and NCP candidates might have split the anti-BJP votes and helped the ruling party win at least 10 seats. The official reason, however, was all monuments would be repaired ahead of the global investors' summit in Lucknow next February, where many foreign guests are expected to be present.