Saturday, May 7 2005 20:11 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Bangalore: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) today (May 7, 2005) disputed the expenditure amount of Rs 63.23 crore for the 'India Shining' media campaign as given by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) and asserted that the initiative did have Parliamentary nod.

"We have not spent that much. We have spent a limited amount", BJP vice-president M Venkaiah Naidu said in response to reporters' queries. He did not specify the exact figure.

He said that the campaign was part of the 'India Development Initiative' for which the Parliament had given its approval. Nowhere in the campaign was BJP or National Democratic Alliance (NDA) sought to be promoted, Naidu said.

In sharp contrast, various State Governments were issuing full-page newspaper advertisements now with Congress president Sonia Gandhi's pictures and not that of Prime Minister Mamnohan Singh, he charged.

CAG had pulled up the previous NDA Government for diversion of funds and incurring unauthorised expenditure of Rs 63.23 crore for the media campaign.