A leading Indian politician says that WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange should be sent to an insane asylum, angrily dismissing allegations contained in a series of U.S. diplomatic cables leaked by the organization.

Mayawati , chief minister of India's northern Uttar Pradesh state, said Tuesday that Assange has either “gone mad,” or is being used by opponents to deliberately tarnish her image.

In a series of leaked diplomatic cables about her from 2007 to 2009, U.S. officials allegedly described Mayawati as a “first-rate egomaniac” who has “institutionalized corruption.”

The cables describe Mayawati as “a virtual paranoid dictator” who charges her party's parliamentary candidates $250,000 to run for election.

The leaked messages also quoted local media allegations that Mayawati lives an inappropriately lavish lifestyle and once sent a private jet to Mumbai solely to pick up a new pair of sandals.

She rejected the claims on Tuesday, saying the allegations were “wrong, baseless and disgusting,” alleging they were an attack on India's lower class.

Mayawati boasts strong support among lower-caste Indians in the northern part of the country, but has been criticized by local media for excessive displays of wealth in her poverty-stricken state.