Did Mayawati sack her bhatija Akash for attacking BJP in his speeches?

Despite the accusations and counter-accusations, Akash Anand has publicly defended Mayawati's decision

On May 8, a day after Mayawati removed her nephew Akash Anand from the post of BSP National Co-ordination, the Samajwadi Party national president attacked her saying the bhatija was "sacked" at the insistence of the Bharatiya Janata Party.

On the evening of May 8, Mayawati hit back and asked the SP supremo to worry about his family members contesting Parliament elections and then to take interest in others. "It would be better if the extremely anti-Dalit SP does not comment or worry about what is going on in the BSP organization. Instead, the SP leadership should only worry about the condition of their own family and the candidates of the Yadav community fielded in the elections because all of them are in a bad state”, she commented on the social media platform 'X’.

Despite the accusations and counter-accusations, Akash Anand publicly defended Mayawati's decision in a post on 'X', expressing his unwavering support and willingness to abide by her directives.

The way Mayawati grounded his nephew after his April 28 meeting where he called the BJP government "atankwadiyon ki sarkar (a government of terrorists) raised eyebrows as to whether she was actually soft towards the BJP.

There are many instances where Anand criticised opposition parties but his barbs were pointed towards BJP. In Nagina on April 6, Anand rebuked the BJP's pride in being dubbed the "bulldozer ki sarkar," denouncing their policies as a cause for embarrassment rather than celebration. His rhetoric intensified in Gorakhpur on April 24, where he dubbed Uttar Pradesh as the "kidnapping capital" and condemned the ruling government as a regime of traitors.

Continuing his verbal assault, Anand accused the BJP government of sabotaging the education sector in Unnao on April 28. He equated the BJP's governance to turmoil, drawing parallels with the Taliban and describing it as "destructive, not progressive."

Anand's rhetoric reached its zenith in Sitapur on the same day, branding the BJP government as "atankwadiyon ki sarkar" and urging voters to retaliate against BJP workers seeking votes by using slippers, shoes, and sticks. He painted a grim picture of a government that perpetuates hunger, violence against women, unemployment, and enslavement under the guise of welfare measures.

In his speeches, the BSP leader also hit out at SP when he criticized SP leadership for silence on atrocities against Muslims despite their support in the 2022 UP Assembly elections. Similarly, he chastised the Congress for its prolonged rule at the Centre, accusing it of neglecting the Bahujan community's welfare.

BSP point of view

A senior leader in BSP said that many factors might have angered Mayawati. One could be Akash’s interaction with the media where he gave interviews to many news channels “without taking permission” from Mayawati.

He may be a national co-ordinator but Akash was supposed to brief Mayawati about his all moves and get permission. “That’s why you have seen that no one in the party interacts with media. Even Satish Mishra is bound to take permission before talking to the media. The party coordinators also maintain a distance from the media,” the BSP leader said on condition of anonymity.

He said by taking action against Akash, Mayawati has sent a message loud and clear that no one in the party is bigger than her. “If she can take action against her nephew she can take action against any Tom, Dick, and Harry,” he said.

The BSP leaders say that Akash was doing well but his amateurish attitude cost him the plum post.

Even in her tweet, Mayawati wrote that Akash has been asked to step down and take up the mantel when he is matured.

Another section of BSP leaders says that she has crushed all charges of nepotism by taking action against her bhatija. “Parties like the Congress, SP and RJD that thrive on nepotism can no longer accuse the BSP of following in their footsteps. The BSP supremo is not dependent on her family and does not promote nepotism, unlike the Gandhis and Yadavs. Behenji (Mayawati) has proved it," said a BSP functionary.

Akash hails Mayawati

In his post, Akash Anand hailed Mayawati as a supreme leader who has sacrificed her life for Bahujan Samaj. “Your decision is acceptable to me,” he wrote in his X post.