Yadav family drama: Mulayam rejects brother Shivpal's resignation from Samajwadi Party posts

Mulayam Singh Yadav today rejected Shivpal's resignation as Samajwadi Party president.

Highlights

• 1 Shivpal today met elder brother Mulayam at the latter's residence in Lucknow.
  
• 2 Shivpal said that for him an indication of Mulayam Singh Yadav was an order.
  
• 3 Shivpal's supporters also demanded the sacking Ram Gopal Yadav.
  

Samajwadi Party supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav today rejected his brother Shivpal Yadav's resignation from all party posts as the bickering within the family that rules over poll-bound Uttar Pradesh further intensified.
Shivpal, his wife Sarla and son Aditya had resigned from all party posts on Thursday as the power struggle between Chief Minister and his uncle went out of control, forcing patriarch Mulayam to firefight the crisis within his family.
Here are the latest updates:

• Shivpal today met elder brother Mulayam at the latter's residence in Lucknow. The meeting is believed to have lasted for seven minutes.
• "Hum sab neta ji ke saath hain (We all are with neta ji)," he said while making it clear that for him only Mulayam is the boss. He did not mention the name of Akhilesh Yadav.
• Hundreds of Shivpal's supporters camped outside the 7, Kalidas Marg residence of the former minister, and raised anti-Akhilesh slogans demanding that all departments be restored to their leader.
• Shivpal said that for him an indication of Mulayam Singh Yadav was an order and he would go by the party chief's decision in any situation.
• "Hum har paristhithi main neta ji ke saath hain aur rahenge, unka ishaara hamare liye aadesh hai," Shivpal, flanked by sacked Mining Minister Gayatri Prajapati and son Aditya, said.
• The protesting supporters said Shivpal should be retained as the state president and demanded that Akhilesh should touch his uncle's feet and say sorry.
• Many Samajwadi Party leaders wept openly and threatened to immolate themselves if their demands were not met.
• Shivpal's supporters also demanded the sacking of senior SP leader Ram Gopal Yadav, who had questioned Akhilesh's removal as the party chief.
• Mulayam has reportedly convened a meeting in Lucknow today to find a solution on the ongoing power struggle between his son Akhilesh and his younger brother Shivpal.
• The feud began after Akhilesh stripped Shivpal of key ministerial portfolios on September 13, hours after he was replaced with Shivpal as the party's state unit chief.