After Expelling Nephew Akash Anand, Mayawati Drops Brother Anand Kumar As BSP National Coordinator, Appoints Randhir Beniwal

The internal rift within the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) appears to be deepening as party chief Mayawati removed her brother Anand Kumar from the position of national coordinator, replacing him with Randhir Beniwal, as reported by The New Indian Express.

The move comes amid growing tensions within the party, following the ouster of Mayawati’s nephew Akash Anand earlier this week.

Anand Kumar, who also holds the post of BSP National Vice President, was recently appointed as national coordinator after Akash Anand was expelled from the party. 

However, Kumar declined to hold both positions, citing his preference to focus on a single role. In response, Mayawati accepted his request and announced Randhir Beniwal, a senior party leader from Saharanpur, Uttar Pradesh, as his replacement.

Taking to microblogging platform X, Mayawati confirmed the decision, stating, "Keeping in mind the interests of the party and the movement, Anand Kumar, who has been selflessly serving the BSP for a long time, expressed his wish to work only on one post. His decision is welcomed", as quoted by The New Indian Express.

With Kumar stepping back from the additional role, BSP Rajya Sabha MP Ramji Gautam and Randhir Beniwal will now jointly serve as the party’s national coordinators, working directly under Mayawati’s leadership to manage party affairs across various states.

The latest reshuffle follows Mayawati’s dramatic decision to strip Akash Anand of all party responsibilities and declare that she would not announce a successor. 

She justified her decision by alleging that Akash was acting under the influence of his father-in-law, Siddharth Ashok, who was expelled from the BSP in February over anti-party activities and factionalism.