Janjivan Bureau / Lucknow : Samajwadi party national president Akhilesh Yadav has been unanimously re-elected for a five-year term at the national convention at Agra Today, further strengthening his grip over the party.
Interestingly, the party’s constitution has been amended to extend the tenure of the national president from the exiting three years to five. Clearly, this has been done to ensure that Akhilesh remains at the helm of affairs not only during the general elections of 2019 but also during the next Vidhan Sabha elections in 2022.
While Akhilesh’s grip over the party has firmed up the same cannot be said about his succeeding to iron out differences within the family.
By choosing to stay away from the national convention, father and chief patron Mulayam Singh Yadav as well as uncle Shivpal Singh Yadav have reiterated that all is still not well in the family.
Putting up a façade, Akhilesh, however, said his father had blessed him through a telephonic call. He said the party could not move ahead without the blessings of ‘netaji’.
The announcement of Akhilesh’s re-election was made by senior party leader Ram Gopal Yadav.
Most of the leaders who had come out in support of Akhilesh during the January 1 coup in the party, replacing Akhilesh with Mulayam, were in attendance at the national convention. Mohd Azam Khan who had attempted to bring the feuding father and son together was also on the dais.
Indicating the toning down of the bitter family fight, Mulayam on September 25 had declared that he was not going to float a political party.
While he did not mince words charging son of betraying his trust, hem however, maintained that he would continue to bless Akhilesh as a son. After that development Akhilesh had met his father to personally invite him to the national convention.
Akhilesh also spoke to uncle Shivpal on Tuesday after a gap of nine months where the uncle reportedly congratulated the nephew in advance on his re-election as the party national president.