The current turmoil in Mulayam’s family has left party ranks confused. “Neither Ramgopal nor (Rajya Sabha member) Amar Singh are mass leaders. Decisions about them will not affect the party. But the rift between Shivpal and Akhilesh has divided party workers into factions in almost every district,” an SP leader said.
The trend of changing decisions over differences of opinion within the family started in June when Shivpal Yadav announced the merger of eastern UP-based Quami Ekta Dal (QED) of jailed MLA Mukhtar Ansari with the SP. That decision was rolled back after opposition from Akhilesh.
A week later, Mulayam appointed Amar Singh as the party’s national general secretary, ignoring the opinions of both Ramgopal and Akhilesh who had opposed Mulayam’s decision to give Amar Singh a Rajya Sabha ticket in the first place. Both Akhilesh and Ramgopal blame Amar Singh for the ongoing crisis in the party, and accuse him of interfering in party affairs.
