'They would not have easily accepted this case too, so there was hardly any point in recommending it for a CBI inquiry,' the official said.

'The chief minister wishes to make it clear that the guilty would not be spared under any circumstances. After all, she did not allow even her own party MPs and legislators to go scot-free once it was found that they were involved in an act of crime,' Pandey said.

The official's remarks came on a day the government took the same stance on the floor of the assembly, when there was much uproar over the demand for a CBI probe.

Congress Legislature Party chief Pramod Tiwari and several other members attacked the BSP government for avoiding a CBI probe as, they said, that would expose the direct involvement of the state police and ruling party leaders in the arson.

The Mayawati administration was also criticised by the entire opposition for its alleged apathy towards the prevailing drought in large parts of the state.

A number of opposition leaders flayed the state government for the 'utter neglect' of Bundelkhand region, for which Mayawati has been demanding a special economic package of Rs.80,000 crore.