Having accepted the report on October 12, the Mulayam Singh Yadav Government on Friday decided to give out the contract to the same company that it had then accused of being thick with Mayawati. Justice Narayan’s report even called the project a “landmark event for the industrial development of Uttar Pradesh.”

The Justice Narayan probe was the third into the expressway contract. Two earlier probes, in 2003 and 2004, were disbanded on orders from Allahabad High Court, which was hearing petitions from J P Industries (now Jaiprakash Associates Ltd), the contractor.

Within a month of coming to power in 2003, Mulayam halted construction on the 150-km long expressway and ordered an inquiry by Justice Ranganath Mishra, a retired Allahabad High Court judge, on the grounds that Mayawati had hurried through the project and committed irregularities. After the high court disbanded this, another committee, comprising former Chief Vigilance Commissioner V S Mathur and district judge L S P Singh, was constituted. This too was disbanded on court orders.

Now, the Narayan committee has rebutted all the allegations made by Mulayam. Consider the following:

• The foremost allegation was that Mayawati gave away 250 hectares of prime land in Noida to Jaiprakrash Associates in contravention of legal procedure. The Narayan Committee report says: “The lease of about 250 hectares of land was consistent with the terms and conditions in the bid documents and also the Concession Agreement.”

• The other allegation was that the Mayawati government did not obtain performance guarantee from Jaiprakash Associates, which is mandatory in case of default. The Narayan report says: “In the face of obligations undertaken by M/s Jaiprakash, there was no necessity of Performance Guarantee/Security.” The project “is of immense public utility and also in national interest.”

• The third allegation was that the Mayawati government pushed through the project worth crores without following the legal procedure. The Narayan report says: “The Contract as per the Concession Agreement dated February 7, 2003 is lawful, valid and still subsisting contract, enforceable in law¿ The costs and obligation, agreed in the Contract, were based on policy decisions of the State Government after due deliberations while preparing the Bid Documents and those would be deemed to be adequate on the facts and in the circumstances of the case.”

And in order to ensure the project doesn’t get entangled in politics again, the committee has recommended certain “mandatory steps” for the government to follow. It says “deadlock at any level” should be removed and recommends that the State Pollution Control Board “expedite its process to grant Environmental Clearance Certificate without any further delay.” Mayawati’s BSP is in obvious glee. Its general-secretary S C Mishra said: “Our stance has been vindicated. This has shown how Mayawati’s genuine efforts for the development of UP had been derailed for political expediency. This would leave lot of egg on the faces of those who called us corrupt.”

The two Mayawati projects

• The Rs 2,250 crore Taj Expressway project — now given the all-clear by the Narayan committee — envisages a 150 km stretch of international standards from Noida to Agra, reducing the Delhi-Agra travel time from 3-4 hours now to some one-and-a-half hours. The agreement was signed with Jayprakash Associates on Feb 7, 2003. It has been held up ever since the Mulayam Singh government took over that year.

• The other Mayawati government project in controversy is the Rs 175 crore Taj Heritage Corridor, aimed at creating shopping arcades, tourist complexes, amusement parks, and restaurants on a 2 km stretch from Agra Fort to Taj Mahal. The matter is sub judice in the SC.