The flip-flop by Mulayam Singh Yadav regarding the Congress-SP alliance has raised many questions.
In the last 10 days between January 29 when Mulayam Singh Yadav had issued first statement opposing the SP-Congress alliance and February 6 when he declared Akhilesh will be the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh and will start electioneering soon, much water has flown down the river Gomti.
In between Mulayam’s younger brother Shivpal Singh Yadav declared that a new party will be formed after March 11 (the day elections results are declared) and lok Dal president Sunil Singh made Mulayam Singh Yadav his party’s star campaigner. All these developments were linked to the antipathy shown by Mulayam against the SP-Congress alliance.
When Mulayam made this statement in Delhi there was no firework in UP or distribution of sweets in party headquarters in lucknow as workers generally do in politics to score points with senior leaders. Does this mean workers are not that enthused with this announcementIJ
“We are busy with Bhaiya’s (Akhilesh’s) campaign. We have his face and work he has done that could take us to victory,” a leader in SP’s war room said.
Here is what happened exactly in last 10 days:
On January 29, he called a reporter of private news channel and gave an interview saying he was against the SP-Congress alliance. It was the day when Rahul Gandhi and Akhilesh Yadav had held a joint Press conference and followed it up with a roadshow which passed through three Assembly segments dominated by minority community. He said the Congress has failed the people. “The Congress has ruled the country for long and has never worked for the development of masses. If India is backward today it is because of the Congress,” he had said in his statement. He even asked the SP workers to contest 105 seats which are being given to the Congress as an agreement.
The Congress and SP workers were stunned. There was a feeling if Mulayam starts talking against alliance in the Yadav-dominated constituencies in central UP it will be a requiem for the tie-up.
Two days later on February 1, the first flip-flop came when Mulayam said he has his blessings for the Congress-SP alliance. “I am not against the alliance. I want the candidates fielded under agreement should be victorious,” he said in a statement but did not say a word about earlier statement when he had asked the SP leaders to file papers in 105 constituencies which have been given to the Congress.
Under the agreement, the Congress will contest 105 seats while the Samajwadi Party will field candidates in 298 constituencies.
On February 3, Mulayam Singh again came up with a statement said he will go for campaigning. “I will campaign for Shivpal Singh Yadav first and then if time permits I will campaign for other Samajwadi Party leaders,” he said. The statement again had tongues wagging about Mulayam giving preference to his brother over his son Akhilesh Yadav.
And on Monday (February 6) Mulayam said he will start campaigning for all leaders of the SP-Congress alliance. “There is no division in party and family. Akhilesh Yadav will be the next Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh,” he told reporters in New Delhi.
Why this flip-flopIJ Is this because he realised that Akhilesh Yadav has come out of his shadow and was now negotiating of his ownIJ Probably he knows that the Samajwadi Party is clawing back in alliance with the Congress and will be reduced to non-entity if the alliance manages to form next Government.
Juhie Singh, the Samajwadi Party spokesperson said it is good news that Netaji has agreed to go for campaigning. He has been a big support for party and will remain so. “We need his guidance and we are happy that he will start campaigning very soon,” she said.