Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav may have snatched the leadership of the Samajwadi Party and firmed up an alliance with the Congress, but the primary obstacle to his campaign continues to be his father, Mulayam Singh Yadav.
And this was clear in his cautious responses to the Yadav patriarch’s threat that he would not campaign for the alliance as he was opposed to aligning with the Congress in principle.
A day after Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi and he took out a collective road show in Lucknow, Mr. Akhilesh on Monday stressed on the winning prospects of the tie-up.
Speaking at a rally in Etah, not too far from the Yadav bastion of Etawah-Mainpuri, Mr. Akhilesh said he was “sure” his father would campaign for the alliance. “He [Mulayam] will be most happy and most honoured if the SP and the Congress come to power in the State,” he said.
Mr. Mulayam is already listed among the SP’s star campaigners, while his brother, and Mr. Akhilesh’s bête noire, Shivpal Yadav is not.
Mr. Akhilesh also said the bicycle (the SP’s symbol) had been strengthened by the cooperation of the hand (the Congress’s symbol). Later, he told a television channel that though he was confident that his party would win the elections on its own, the alliance with the Congress would ensure a bigger margin of victory.
Hours after Mr. Rahul Gandhi and Mr. Akhilesh on Sunday held a joint press conference as a show of unity, Mr. Mulayam went on air to declare that he was against the alliance, putting the SP in a spot of bother. “The SP is completely capable of fighting elections on its own. When we fought alone, we got a majority. There was no need for an alliance. I am against this electoral alliance. I will not campaign for this alliance.”
Mr. Mulayam also tried to press hard his past efforts for Muslims and his long-held struggle against the Congress. “There were many issues on which we had to struggle against them [Congress]. Be it the [Babri] Masjid issue or issues like fake encounters — there were many such deaths at one time. The Congress ruled for so long and that’s why our country lagged behind,” he said.
Significantly, he also said he would appeal to his supporters to campaign against the Congress on the 105 seats it was fighting on as part of the alliance with the SP.
SP leaders were left to explain the worth of Mr. Mulayam’s comments as any defiance by the senior Yadav could play a spoiler in Akhilesh’s game. SP spokesperson Juhi Singh played it safe. “We have full respect in our hearts for Netaji . We understand his ideology and views. But the alliance is done and the alliance will fight the elections,” she said.
This came at a time when defections from the SP continued. Sharda Pratap Shukla, a minister from Lucknow and filed his nomination from the RLD. This came a day after another senior Mulayam aide and former minister Narad Rai, who was shunted out by the Chief Minister, shifted to the BSP and will now fight on its ticket from Ballia. He joins Ambika Chaudhary, another member of the old guard who recently defected to the BSP alleging that Mr. Akhilesh had disrespected his father. Mr. Rai, who is close to Mr. Shivpal, said that he took the decision in view of the “insult” meted out to Mr. Mulayam.
Minister Rajendra Chaudhary, who is close to Mr. Akhilesh, however said that defections of a few MLAs would not harm the party, as it was “overall on top.”
The BJP, meanwhile, attempted to take advantage of the apparent disquiet between Mr. Mulayam and Mr. Akhilesh. Union Minister Mahesh Sharma, while terming the alliance “unbalanced,” backed Mr. Mulayam’s remarks saying the Yadav patriarch had spoken the “truth.” “Mr. Akhilesh should be asked the reason behind the alliance with a party that has lost its ground not only in the State but also in the country,” Mr. Sharma told a news agency.
BSP chief Mayawati on Sunday termed the SP-Congress alliance a “conspiracy” hatched under the instructions of the BJP to “stop the BSP from coming to power at any cost.”
