Now, UP govt turns the heat on Sahara

LUCKNOW: Corporate houses closely identified with the earlier Mulayam Singh Yadav regime are now finding the going tough under the new BSP dispensation. After the Anil Ambani group’s SEZ in Noida hit a road block, the Sahara India group of Subrata Roy, considered friendly to the Samajwadi Party, has also come under the scanner.

Sahara India Housing has been served a notice by the Lucknow Development Authority saying that the multi-storied building being constructed by it in the Sahara Shaher township is unauthorised.

LDA vice-chairman Harbhajan Singh said, “The Sahara India Housing has been served a notice on June 2, for constructing an unauthorised multi-storied building, in Sahara Shaher. The map of the multi-storied building of which two stories have already been built, was not approved by the LDA. Any construction within the jurisdiction area of the LDA has to begin only after the map or layout is approved by the authority.” SIHL has to file a reply by June 8.

The said structure being built on an area of about 2,400 sq mt is being constructed in the 270-acre Sahara Shaher township located in the posh Gomti Nagar area of the state capital. Mayawati soon after taking over as the chief minister of UP about a month back, had stressed that no vindictive action would be taken against rivals. But ever since her assuming office those closely identified with the earlier regime of her bete-noire Mulayam Singh Yadav have been finding the going tough.

To begin with her government expressed reservations against the SEZ of Anil Ambani group in Noida on the grounds that the land site identified for it was not contiguous. She also scrapped the sugar policy introduced by the Yadav government which was said to favour a few groups close to the regime.

Bollywood veteran Amitabh Bachchan who was appointed as the brand ambassador of UP by Mr Yadav, is also facing the heat over his alleged illegal purchase of agricultural land in Barabanki.