Mulayam Singh Yadav (Sanjay Kanojia/AFP/Getty Images)Is he on his brother’s side or his son’s? Or has he made the switch from the brother to son?
Or were the talks of him always being hand-in-glove with Akhilesh true?
Regardless, the latest update from the Yadav ‘civil war’ is that Mulayam Singh Yadav has agreed to campaign for son and Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav.
This comes after he had recently asked his supporters to contest independently against Congress candidates of the Samajwadi Party-Congress alliance.
Whether he was on his son’s side throughout, or he had a genuine gharwapasi , what is clear by now is that Mulayam Singh Yadav is no longer the most important leader in the Samajwadi Party. Even without him, Akhilesh Yadav has been campaigning in the state, and appearing in rallies with Rahul Gandhi.
As regards the feud in the Yadav clan, Akhilesh’s uncle and Mulayam’s brother Shivpal has declared that he would form a new party after March 11, the day when votes for the elections in UP are counted. What is evident from that is Shivpal’s intention to damage the chances of the SP-Congress alliance in traditional Yadav strongholds.
With his father saying one thing today and another tomorrow, his ally proudly embracing the tag of ‘SCAM’, and uncle threatening to sabotage his campaign, will Akhilesh Yadav be able to pull it back together in time?
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