Shivpal Singh Yadav wants Mulayam to remove Akhilesh and Ram Gopal?

Shivpal Singh Yadav's resignation on Thursday exposed the bickering in the Yadav clan in the run-up to the Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls just a few months away.

Pic courtsey: ANI

Lucknow: A day after Shivpal Singh Yadav resigned from the Akhilesh Yadav Cabinet and also quitted as state party chief, a meeting is likely between the Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister and Samajwadi Party supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav.

Mulayam will today chair a parliamentary board meeting of the Samajwadi Party in Lucknow to put an end to the fight between his son Akhilesh Yadav and brother Shivpal.

Meanwhile, Shivpal addressed his supporters outside his residence and reiterated that Mulayam is the supreme leader and he will abide by his orders. 

He urged his supporters to gather outside party office, where he is scheduled to meet his elder brother Mulayam. 

Protesters were heard chanting "Ram Gopal ko bahar karo" slogans during Shivpal's address to supporters.

According to CNN-News18, Shivpal wants Mulayam to remove Akhilesh and Ram Gopal, says he is not interested in mere holding onto portfolios.

Shivpal's resignation on Thursday exposed the bickering in the Yadav clan in the run-up to the state Assembly polls just a few months away.

Close aides of the former Public Works Department minister informed that Shivpal has returned all government perks and facilities, like official staff and vehicles, and will be vacating his official residence, 7, Kalidas Marg today.

Unconfirmed reports suggest that the Chief Minister has returned the resignation of his uncle. Shivpal's official residence is adjacent to the official 5, Kalidas Marg, the residence of CM Akhilesh Yadav.

Soon after Shivpal sent his resignation to his nephew Chief Minister, his son and chairman of the Uttar Pradesh Pradeshik Cooperative Federation, Aditya Yadav, also quit the post. Shivpal's wife Sarla also gave resignation from the post of District Cooperative Bank chairperson, Etawah.

Shivpal Yadav took the decision to quit the Cabinet and party post after a meeting with his elder brother and party Chief Mulayam Singh Yadav.

Akhilesh Yadav had on Tuesday stripped his uncle Shivpal from the plum posts of PWD, Cooperative and Irrigation minister.

Earlier, as the first family of Uttar Pradesh battled an open war within, Mulayam Singh rushed to Lucknow and met Shivpal and Akhilesh separately to douse the flames.

As soon as he reached here, the SP chief summoned Shivpal and held closed-door meeting with him.

Shivpal later met Akhilesh at his official residence, sources said, adding the meeting came at the behest of Mulayam.

Immediately thereafter, Mulayam met his Chief Minister son Akhilesh, the sources said.

Earlier, Mulayam's cousin and SP's national general secretary Ram Gopal Yadav, who is seen as backing the Chief Minister, said the leadership had committed an unintentional "mistake" by removing Akhilesh as party's UP president.

Ram Gopal, who had met the Chief Minister, said the "differences" had arisen due to some "misunderstanding".

He blamed "outsiders" for the crisis, an apparent reference to Amar Singh who recently returned to the party after a number of years.

He claimed that "Akhilesh is not angry with anyone and the decision of netaji (Mulayam) is final in the party."

The same was said by Shivpal at his press conference.

The feud had spilled into the open after the Chief Minister stripped Shivpal of key ministerial portfolios two days back, hours after he was replaced with Shivpal as the party's state unit chief by his father.

In a related development, former chief secretary Deepak Singhal, whose sudden removal is said to have triggered the whole controversy, was on Thursday posted as Chairman of State Vigilance Commission.

Sources say, Singhal who had been put on waiting list after his removal, was hurriedly posted to this new post so that the issue is closed for the time being. Mulayam Singh Yadav, hours after his removal, had asked Akhilesh to reinstate him, which he refused.

(With Agency inputs)