Governor Naik, SP govt on collision course over names for Vidhan Parishad

LUCKNOW: Uttar Pradesh governor Ram Naik and the Samajwadi Party government appeared to be on collision course after Naik put on hold five out of nine ruling party nominees for the legislative council, seeking “proper background information” on them, saying he had received complaints that they did not fulfill the criteria for membership of the Vidhan Parishad.
Naik called chief minister Akhilesh Yadav to the Raj Bhawan on Thursday and told him the four names he had cleared were of Jitendra Yadav, a relative of former Bihar CM Lalu Prasad, Leelawati Kushwaha, Shri Ram Singh Yadav and Ram Vriksha Yadav.
Those the governor has put on hold seeking more information about their antecedents are Sanjay Seth, Kamlesh Pathak, Abdul Sarfaraz Khan, Ranvijay Singh and Rajpal Kashyap.
This is the second time within weeks that the governor has returned the council list. Earlier, he had sent back all the nine names, seeking more information about them.
A Raj Bhawan communiqué subsequently stated that as per the Constitution, those recommended for the Council should have eminence in the field of science, art, music and social work, suggesting the names sent by UP government may not be worthy.
When Naik had returned the list about a month ago, it was the first time in UP’s political history that a governor had done so. The government then resent the list with details sought by the governor.
When TOI had asked Naik that nominees of ruling parties are routinely given consent by governors, he said, “I am here to set things right and not bound to follow the wrongs done in the past.”
After Naik had first returned the list, SP general secretary Ram Gopal Yadav had said if the governor were to send it back to the government, it would not make any amendment and force him to approve it as he is constitutionally bound to follow the advice of the council of ministers.