Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Yadav on Monday chaired a meeting at the party’s headquarters in Lucknow and expressed sadness over the escalating internal rift in his party at a time when his leaders must be working for the upcoming Uttar Pradesh polls.
“I feel really sad because of this rift in our family. Instead of fighting our weaknesses we are fighting amongst ourselves,” Mulayam said, referring to the growing differences between his son Akhilesh Yadav and brother Shivpal Yadav.
“I am not a weak person, even to this day. Do not think that the youth is not with me. If you can’t face criticism, you can’t be a leader,” Mulayam said at the meet, without naming anybody.
The party inched closer to a split when Akhilesh sacked his uncle Shivpal Yadav along with three other ministers close to him on Sunday. Shivpal, who is the party’s state president, in retaliated by expelling Ram Gopal Yadav, who is close to Akhilesh, from the party for six years.
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“I will never forget the work Shivpal has done for me and Samajwadi Party. We have worked really hard to form this party,” Mulayam said.
UP CM Akhilesh Yadav offers to resign from the top job, says he was hurt when his father Mulayam removed him as the party chief.
“Let ‘netaji’ (Mulayam) install a chief minister who he feels is honest, my father is my guru, Akhilesh” said.
“People are saying a new party will be formed. Who is forming a new party? I am not,” Akhilesh said.
Shivpal Yadav countered Akhilesh’s claims and said that the CM had told him about floating a new party.
“Akhilesh Yadav had said to me that he will form another party, he said it, he said it to me. We can not tolerate liars in SP, we just can’t,” Shivpal said
Supporters of rival Samajwadi Party factions on Monday clashed outside the party headquarters here ahead of the crucial meeting called by Mulayam Singh Yadav.
Camp followers of Akhilesh and his sacked uncle Shivpal Yadav exchanged blows as tensions mounted before the meet.
Police used force to disperse the slogan-shouting supporters who tried to break the cordon to march towards the party office.
