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CDs were doctored: Mayawati

By Sharat Pradhan in Lucknow
May 17, 2003 20:33 IST

Armed with a report from the Central Forensic Research Laboratory, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati on Saturday once again described the video released by the Samajwadi Party as 'doctored'.

The report, dated May 12, was ambiguous. It said, "On the basis of the analysis on soundtrack and detection of start and stop activities, it is revealed that the recording on the CDs were altered in the form of deletion, obscuration and transformation."

But it didn't specify if the voice was Mayawati's or whether it belonged to one person.

Yet Mayawati said, "This report prepared by an independent central agency has confirmed my suspicions about the CDs being doctored.

"The Samajwadi Party had levelled all kinds of baseless and false charges against me through these CDs as a part of their conspiracy to topple my government and to tarnish my image. But now that the Chandigarh-based laboratory has proved them wrong, Mulayam Singh Yadav owes me a public apology."

The video showed her demanding cuts out of the constituency development fund of her party members of Parliament and members of the legislative assembly.

While MPs get Rs20 million a year for development work in their constituencies, legislators get Rs7.5 million.

Another recording had shown her 'denigrating' Hindu rituals.

Peeved over the charges, the chief minister got criminal cases registered against Yadav, his party general secretary Amar Singh and other SP leaders.

However, the Allahabad high court had stayed their arrest.

Subsequently, she sent a copy of the two CDs to the forensic laboratory, which gave the report.

Sharat Pradhan in Lucknow

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