Mulayam Singh Yadav, Shivpal Yadav and Amar Singh addresses the media amid Samajwadi Party crisis.
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Uttar Pradesh chief minister Akhilesh Yadav would not step down as the Samajwadi Party president, at least not till the election was over, sources said, dealing another blow to hopes of reconciliation in the faction-riddled party. Even though Akhilesh’s camp has claimed support from 220 out of 229 party MLAs, the possibility of SP’s symbol – cycle – being frozen by the Election Commission (EC) can not be ruled out.
Akhilesh Yadav had a 90-minute meeting with his father this morning.
“There is no dispute in our party” (Hamari party me koi vivad nahi hai)”, the SP leader said after he met party workers with his brother Shivpal Singh.
Rajya Sabha MP Amar Singh has been accorded “Z” category security cover of central paramilitary commandos by the Union government due to threat perception following “recent activities”, a development that comes in the backdrop of infighting in SP ahead of UP Assembly polls.
Later yesterday, Akhilesh confidant and uncle Ram Gopal Yadav too held talks with the election watchdog. The Chief Minister wanted a “three-month free hand to win the polls” and then sit for his father.
He has been trying to reconcile the father-son duo since the party feud came to the fore.
Talking to reporters in Lucknow during the day, Mulayam said there were “no differences” between him and Akhilesh but “one person has influenced his son” which had led to “problems in the party”, an apparent reference to Ramgopal.
At Mulayam Singh’s Delhi home, Ram Gopal Yadav’s face has been torn out of a party poster that features the rest of the leaders.
However, Akhilesh politely refused the proposal and told Lalu that he will happily do so but only after the elections.
For the benefit of the entire country, he said SP stands united and there is no question of any division in the party.
Chances of reconciliation between Akhilesh Yadav and his father Mulayam Singh Yadav brightened after the two met in Lucknow on Tuesday morning for nearly two hours. This was averse to the desire of Netaji but for Akhilesh, the alliance can be a game-changer in the forthcoming elections.
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The Election Commission today said that it will hear the dispute between the two factions on January 13 and will decide who is entitled to the symbol “cycle”, which serves as a crucial and easy connect with voters.
