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UP: NREGA scam in Sonia Gandhi's constituency? by Rupashree Nanda

-CNN-IBN


CNN-IBN has exposed an employment guarantee scam in Congress Chief Sonia Gandhi's constituency Rae Bareli where fake job cards are being used to siphon off money.

An RTI application has thrown up some uncomfortable facts in this constituency where in the last 2 years, Rs 280 Crores were spent in Rae Bareli's MNREGS projects, but God knows where exactly is the money going!

The national rural employment guarantee scheme is credited with giving UPA its second term. Not surprisingly as the crucial state of Uttar Pradesh goes to the polls, MNREGS is the new battlefield.

While Rahul Gandhi never fails to claim ownership of the rural job guarantee scheme in his UP tours, the MNREGS story in Sonia's Rae Bareli is different, it seems.

Mangal Ram's name figures in his brother Budhilal's job card. He's shown to have worked for 14 days in 2009 and seven days in 2011, but Mangal Ram has died 18 years ago.

"My father has died 18 years ago," Mangal Ram's son said.

Budhilal's wife said neither she nor her husband worked in place of Mangal Ram.

The villagers are accusing Shiv Varan, the pradhan's father-in-law, of running a job card racket.

Shiv Varan, however, in his defence said, "It's because I am a dalit they are having problems."

Under NREGA 100 days or work a year are provided but Aman Kumar was paid for 268 days in 2009. But surprisingly Kumar said that he had not worked at all in 2009.

"I haven't done any work at all." Aman Kumar said.

There are also fake projects; the money for a lake in Katara village was sanctioned twice, which is not built. A road in the village was sanctioned twice on the same day. Shockingly the road was not even built.

"After we took out the papers we came to know only half the work has been done. In first phase 25,000 rupees has been spent and, in second phase, 57500 thousand has been spent. There are no muster rolls for the second phase," villager Ram Gopal said.

In the last 2 years, Rs 280 crore were spent in Rae Bareli's MNREGS projects, but where exactly is the money going.