Mulayam Singh visits SP office to make presence felt

This was Mulayam’s first visit to the party office after UP Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav replaced him as SP’s national president in a party convention called by Ram Gopal Yadav on January 1.

Samajwadi Party rift, SP fighting, SP rift, Samajwadi Party internal fighting, Mulayam-Akhilesh, Akhilesh Yadav, Uttar Pradesh elections, UP polls, UP elections, India news, Indian Express

Mulayam Singh Yadav (File Photo)

Before he left for Delhi to stake his claim for the Samajwadi Party national president’s post and the party symbol before the Election Commission, Mulayam Singh Yadav on Sunday paid a short visit to SP state headquarters in Lucknow, apparently to send a message that he was the tallest leader of the party and the party office belonged to him.

He sat in the office of the party’s national president. He told party workers that there was no dispute in the party and asked them to work at the grassroots. Shivpal Singh Yadav was with him during the visit.

This was Mulayam’s first visit to the party office after Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav replaced him as SP’s national president in a party convention called by Ram Gopal Yadav on January 1.

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On Sunday morning, after he and Shivpal had left the residence for Delhi, Mulayam suddenly asked security personnel to take him to the SP state headquarters. A few workers were at the party office. When Mulayam reached, they started raising slogans in support of him and Shivpal. They did not name Akhilesh in their slogans.

Mulayam and Shivpal then went to the national SP president’s office. After sitting there for a few minutes, Mulayam came out in the lawn. He wished partyworkers new year and said that all was well in the party and that they should work on the field ahead of the Assembly election. He then left for the airport.

Lalmani Verma

Lalmani is an Assistant Editor with The Indian Express, and is based in New Delhi. He covers politics of the Hindi Heartland, tracking BJP, Samajwadi Party, BSP, RLD and other parties based in UP, Bihar and Uttarakhand. Covered the Lok Sabha elections of 2014, 2019 and 2024; Assembly polls of 2012, 2017 and 2022 in UP along with government affairs in UP and Uttarakhand. ... Read More