Pomp and grandeur marked the start of the 75th birthday celebrations of Samajwadi Party partriach, Mulayam Singh, on Friday. The celebrations began with Mr. Yadav riding a Victorian age buggy reportedly imported from London. The event was hosted by Urban Development Minister, Mohammad Azam Khan in his political backyard, Rampur.
For the record, Mr. Singh’s birthday on November 22 is celebrated every year as “Samta diwas” (day of equality) throughout the State.
His son and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister, Akhilesh Yadav, younger brother and PWD Minister Shivpal Singh Yadav, accompanied him on the buggy. With almost the entire State Cabinet in attendance, the Samajwadi Party chief was driven to Mohd. Ali Jauhar University campus with school children lining up along the 12 kilometre route from Ambedkar Park to the varsity guest house.
At the stroke of midnight, Mr. Singh will cut his birthday cake, reported to be 75-feet long. On Saturday, Mr. Singh will lay the foundation stone of Jauhar Medical College and address a public meeting. Mr. Akhilesh Yadav is likely to announce some development schemes for Rampur.
Even as the grand birthday celebrations were seen as a departure from the basic Samajwadi ideology of “gaon, garib aur kisan” (village, poor and farmer), newsmen’s query on the source of funds for the lavish celebrations led Mr. Azam Khan to remark that it has been funded by “Dawood Ibrahim, Abu Salem and Taliban”. On being asked about the veracity of the statement, the State IG ( Law and Order), A. Satish Ganesh told journalists at the Home Press briefing that he was not aware of the statement.
The idea of celebrating Mr. Mulayam Singh’s 75th birthday in Rampur was mooted by the Urban Development Minister, who apparently wanted to score some political points. Not only did the celebrations help reinforce Mr. Khan’s closeness to Mr. Singh and re-invent himself as the party’s “Muslim face” with an eye on 2017 Assembly polls, it also marked a “thanksgiving” for his wife, Tazeen Fatima entering the Rajya Sabha and Jauhar University becoming a reality.
