Samajwadi Party Founder and Former UP CM Mulayam Singh Yadav Dies, Aged 82

Today morning, Samajwadi Party founder and three-time Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, Mulayam Singh Yadav, died aged 82. Popularly referred to as Netaji by Samajwadi supporters and a key politician in opposition politics, Mulayam Singh Yadav has also served as India’s Defence Minister. Due to his ill health, he has been out of the political limelight for two years now. Former wrestler Mulayam Singh Yadav rose to popularity in politics in the late 1980s during protests and agitations against Mandal Commission which was set up to identify the socially or educationally backward classes. In no time, Mulayam Singh Yadav became a key leader in Uttar Pradesh politics. The veteran politician was famous for not only partnering with his friends but also with enemies. Mulayam Singh Yadav’s association with Bahujan Samaj Party leader Mayawati for a short-lived alliance government in UP being a clear case in this point. In 2012, when Samajwadi Party returned to power in Uttar Pradesh, Mulayam Singh Yadav passed the baton to his son Akhilesh Yadav due to his ailing health. In 2016, everyone was shocked when the former UP CM expelled his own son from the Party. However, the father-son duo later patched up, with Akhilesh Yadav emerging as the vital element of the Samajwadi Party.

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