Lucknow, March 17 (IANS) Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati was Wednesday presented with another garland of currency notes, even as a row triggered by a similar show of extragavance two days ago refused to fade away.

Stated to have been made with neatly folded Rs.500 and Rs.100 notes, the Rs.18 lakh garland was gifted to the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) president at a function here Wednesday.

Unlike Monday, when every effort was made by BSP functionaries to conceal the fact that the garland was made of Rs.1,000 denomination notes possibly running into crores, this time the party gloated about the gift.

Mayawati's multi-portfolio cabinet minister Naseemuddin Siddiqui declared: 'This garland has been made with currency notes worth Rs.18 lakhs, contributed by party functionaries from Uttar Pradesh's 18 divisions. The party raised the money.'

The garland ceremony took place at meeting of party MPs and legislators at the BSP state headquarters here.

Siddiqui said the second garland was in response to the storm kicked up by the opposition over the Monday garland bestowed upon the BSP supremo.