Uttar Pradesh is often referred to as "Ulta Pradesh" where things often go topsy-turvy. So why should one feel outraged if the chief minister of this poor state goes all out to announce his passion for opulence?

Yes, CM Akhilesh Yadav may not be allowed to have his way in appointment of his ministers or top bureaucrats who, more often than not, are handpicked by his overbearing father Mulayam Singh Yadav, but Akhilesh sure enough has all the freedom to opt for an extravagant lifestyle.

No wonder then that the CM did not give a second thought before giving away a whopping Rs 600 crore of taxpayers' money to build a garish chief minister's office.

He also did not hesitate before pulling out another Rs 50 crore or more out of the state exchequer to renovate an old government bungalow, identified as his home during his post-CM days.

After all, he had just enacted a law to circumvent an apex court order that did away with the practice of allotting houses for life to former chief ministers.

Exactly 24 hours after he occupies the newly-constructed CM's office, christened as Lok Bhawan, Akhilesh plans to move into his exquisitely renovated residence.

The new office, that can put any business magnate to shame, is a five-storeyed home in Victorian architectural style that matches the mid-20th century Vidhan Bhawan building on the other side of Vidhan Sabha Marg, state capital Lucknow's busiest thoroughfare.

UP chief minister Akhilesh Yadav (left) with his overbearing father Mulayam, the SP chief. (Photo credit: India Today)

It is the fifth building in the vicinity of four existing ones which form the power centre of the country's most populous state.

The CM's chamber has been carved out on the top floor to keep intact the aura of "pancham tal", the fifth floor in the Secretariat annexe where it was located so far.

Spread across 2,000sqft with tall bulletproof glass windows, this new fifth floor has a couple of grand visitor rooms, a giant cabinet meeting hall plus a chamber for the CM's principal secretary.

The fourth and third floors have luxurious chambers and offices for about a dozen secretaries, special secretaries and other staff engaged in the CM's personal secretariat.

The first floor has the offices of the chief secretary, home secretary and the secretary in the department of personnel and appointments.

The ground floor is devoted to the media. Besides the offices of principal secretary and director of information and public relations, a 600- capacity auditorium has been created on the floor, together with a huge hall for Akhilesh's press conferences.

A special enclosure with multiple computers has been carved out as working stations for mediapersons along with a plush lounge and a library. The basement provides ample room for parking of vehicles. The building has been erected on a 6.3-acre plot, of which the CM's personal chamber is about 3,000 sqft, and costs Rs 603 crore.

What will happen to the existing building that houses all these offices is nobody's business. Perhaps all those plush places will fall into the lap of lesser mortals in what is called a samajwadi (socialist) regime.

The idea for a separate Chief Minister's Office was first mooted by BSP chief Mayawati when she was CM between 2002 and 2007. The cost estimated in 2007 was Rs 300 crore. Akhilesh and his party may not see eye to eye with Mayawati on anything but they certainly agree on extravagant projects!

Also read: Mulayam cannot afford to take Akhilesh Yadav for granted anymore