Newsmaker | ‘Good listener’: Mayawati’s likely heir hits ground for Rajasthan poll prep

“He is a good listener,” said a BSP leader who did not wish to be identified. “He interacts with workers too, apart from office-bearers. During the recent UP Assembly polls, he held some meetings with youths. In other states, he has been meeting senior leaders. Behen ji (Mayawati) is grooming him for the long term. Whenever he visits any district for a party meeting, he is accompanied by at least two coordinators from the respective state who brief him about the local political scenario and introduce him to the local cadre.”

Other insiders said Akash was active in the party’s decision-making on issues related to the youth and social media. He was given the responsibility of the BSP campaign in Punjab and Uttarakhand during the Assembly elections and addressed several rallies. “Under the guidance of Behen ji, Akash is now focusing on Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh. Recently, he visited Rajasthan thrice and MP once. He is regularly having closed-door meetings and online meetings with youth from across India,” said a BSP functionary.

Akash is the son of Mayawati’s younger brother and BSP number two Anand Kumar. He completed his schooling in Delhi and his MBA degree in London. He returned to India in 2017 and in May that year accompanied Mayawati to Saharanpur where a Thakur-Dalit clash had occurred. Four months later, Anand and Akash were officially introduced to BSP workers. It came a few months after the BJP won the state elections and the BSP ended third with 19 seats. A BSP leader recalled that the party president introduced Akash to him and his colleagues, saying, “This is Akash, he has completed his MBA from London and now will look after the party’s activities.”

In the run-up to the 2019 general elections, Akash received media attention after Mayawati announced that her nephew would join the BSP movement to learn the ropes of politics. He became more active as the BSP inked an alliance with the Samajwadi Party (SP) for the polls and was seen attending the alliance’s political rallies. At the time, Akash was also credited with getting his aunt to Twitter. When the Election Commission banned Mayawati from campaigning for 48 hours, he addressed his first rally in Agra. Akash was joined by SP president Akhilesh Yadav and Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) president Ajit Singh, both BSP allies at the time. He was appointed BSP national coordinator in June 2019, officially marking his rise in the party hierarchy.