Samajwadi Party turmoil throws up clear leader
Regardless of the eventual outcome of the grim internal battle that is on in the Samajwadi Party, one conclusion is indisputable: Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav has emerged the winner. The show of strength he demonstrated, with an overwhelming number of party legislators not just attending a meeting he summoned but also categorically expressing their faith in his leadership, rattled the old guard led by Shivpal Yadav and backed by Samajwadi Party supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav. Before they could recover, a party ‘convention', which Akhilesh Yadav’s confidant Ramgopal Yadav organised with great success, resolved to oust Shivpal Yadav and another leader, Amar Singh, from the Samajwadi Party. Realising the futility of contesting the growing numbers in the Chief Minister's favour, Mulayam Singh Yadav abandoned his plan of having a counter-convention. Earlier, Akhilesh Yadav had had the last laugh when his suspension from the party was withdrawn within 24 hours of being issued. Now the Chief Minister knows that he has the upper hand and is willing to prepare for the ‘push comes to shove' situation with greater confidence than before. Part of the reason for Akhilesh Yadav's popularity is the low level of credibility his opponents have. Neither Shivpal Yadav nor Amar Singh enjoys acceptability among the voters, especially the younger lot. Both have baggage that is difficult to disown. If the former has a poor image when it comes to transparency and integrity in public duties, Amar Singh is seen as a fixer and manipulator; worse, the Akhilesh camp sees him as a party-destroyer and a family-divider.
Such is the animosity that even a known Mulayam Singh Yadav loyalist — who is presently torn, though, between the two warring camps — Mohammed Azam Khan, has consistently accused Amar Singh of disruption. There may or may not be any truth in these accusations, but Amar Singh or Shivpal Yadav alone could not have created the crisis within the party (and arguably within the ruling family) without the tacit backing of Mulayam Singh Yadav. Perhaps the party chieftain believes that Akhilesh Yadav does not have what it takes to steer the party to an Assembly win in 2017. But he must have been surprised by the massive show of support for the Chief Minister. Perhaps he should reconcile to the fact that the son has come out of his father's shadow, and back him solidly. But this is unlikely to happen, as Mulayam Singh Yadav has made it known on several occasions that in the tussle between the Akhilesh Yadav faction and the Shivpal Yadav group, he is with the former. Indeed, on occasions, he has even questioned the Chief Minister's contribution to the party.
The battle will rage on for a while now. The fight for the party symbol, for the party office and for party conventions will get deeper. The Election Commission of India will have to decide on allotting the official Samajwadi Party symbol to either of the two factions. With the Assembly election round the corner, the poll panel may decide to play safe and freeze the symbol. Meanwhile, rivals such as the Bahujan Samaj Party, the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Congress are watching the unfolding drama and hoping to gain from the conflict.