Lucknow: Ahead of the Assembly polls, ruling Samajwadi Party Sunday appeared to be headed for a split, with Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav and his party supremo and father Mulayam Singh engaging in a face-off by sacking each other’s loyalists Shivpal Yadav and Ramgopal Yadav.
On a day of fast-paced developments, Akhilesh first sacked Shivpal, his uncle and party’s state unit president, along with three other ‘‘pro-Amar Singh’’ ministers from his Cabinet. Mulayam, in a tit-for-tat action, expelled Ramgopal, pro-CM cousin and SP’s national general secretary, from the party for six years.
Mulayam, who remained silent during the day, told reporters in the evening that ‘‘Whatever I have to say, I will say tomorrow.’’ He made the remarks after a meeting Shivpal, Om Prakash Singh, senior minister and spokeperson Ambika Chaudhary, and MLC Ashu Malik, and some others.
The crisis in the first family of Uttar Pradesh unfolded in the morning when Akhilesh held a meeting of party legislators, a day ahead of a mega meeting of party MPs, MLAs, MLCs and ministers called by Mulayam where some more tough decisions were likely to be taken.
Those who attended the meeting claimed that 183 of 229 SP MLAs attended it and there were demands for cracking the whip against supporters of Amar Singh, whose re-induction in the party two months ago had triggered a fight in the family.
After the meeting, Akhilesh recommended to Governor Ram Naik that Cabinet ministers Shivpal, Narad Rai and Om Prakash Singh and MoS-Independent charge Sayeda Shadab Fatima be sacked. This was accepted immediately.
While the meeting was underway, hundreds of Akhilesh’s supporters were raising slogans in his favour outside. Significantly, before Akhilesh announced the sacking of Shivpal and three other ministers, Ramgopal issued a letter written to party workers, expressing support to Akhilesh and warning those opposing him. ‘‘Those who oppose Akhilesh won’t be able to show their faces in the Assembly. Where Akhilesh is, victory follows,’’ he said in the letter.
After his sacking, Shivpal met Mulayam at his residence, which is close to the CM’s bungalow. Later, he announced that the SP chief had expelled Ramgopal from the party for six years.
He said he was not worried about being dropped from the government and declared that the state Assembly elections would be fought under leadership of Mulayam. As the confrontation between the Akhilesh camp and the Mulayam camp appeared to be reaching a point of no return, reports were already doing the rounds that Akhilesh could launch a new party named ‘National Samajwadi Party’ or ‘Pragatisheel Samajwadi Party’ with motorcycle as its symbol.
Interestingly, according to some media reports, Ramgopal had met officials of the Election Commission in New Delhi recently which was seen as an exercise aimed at exploring a new symbol and party name if Akhilesh dumps SP.
Party legislators who met at the residence of the Chief Minister were said to be in a belligerent mood, opposing any action that could sideline Akhilesh in the run-up to the Assembly polls.
The tenor of the delegates was to crack the whip on supporters of Amar Singh, whose induction into the party two months ago had triggered a similar hullabaloo, according to party sources. The developments came a day after Akhilesh skipped an important strategy meeting of SP district and city unit presidents called by Shivpal. The CM instead separately met the delegates later at his official residence.
SP old-timers Beni Prasad Verma and Reoti Raman Singh tried to mediate a thaw to the ongoing crisis, but their efforts did not yield any positive result.
The tussle in the party intensified last month when Mulayam replaced 43-year-old Akhilesh with his 61-year-old uncle
Shivpal to the post of UP party chief, and also expelled several youth leaders seen as close to Akhilesh.
Agencies
