Samajwadi Party founder Mulayam Singh Yadav breathed his last on Monday morning at the age of 82 years in a Gurugram hospital. His son and SP chief Akhilesh Yadav informed about Mulayam Singh Yadav’s demise through his Twitter handle. The last rites of the 10 times MLA and seven times MP, who also served as the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh trice, will be performed in Safai district tomorrow i.e. Tuesday.
समाजवादी पार्टी के व्योवृद्ध नेता व यूपी के पूर्व मुख्यमंत्री श्री मुलायम सिंह यादव जी के आज निधन हो जाने की ख़बर अति-दुःखद। उनके परिवार व सभी शुभचिन्तकों के प्रति मेरी गहरी संवेदना। कुदरत उन सबको इस दुःख को सहन करने की शक्ति दे।
— Mayawati (@Mayawati) October 10, 2022
As soon as the news of the demise of the SP leader spread condolence messages pour in including from Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Congress MP Rahul Gandhi. But among all, a condolence message that keeps an important place is of Bahujan Samaj Party chief Mayawati’s, as both have been arch-rivals of each other throughout their entire political career.
Expressing her condolence on Twitter, Mayawati wrote that the news of the passing of the veteran politician and former chief minister is very disappointing.
BSP and SP were at one point two opposite polls of the Uttar Pradesh political landscape. However, this bitter rivalry began with an alliance back in the 1993 Assembly polls.
The elections were being contested in the aftermath of the demolition of the controversial structure of Babri Masjid the VP Singh government’s implementation of the Mandal Commission recommendations for reservation.
Against this backdrop, BSP founder Kanshi Ram and Mulayam Singh Yadav formed an alliance that prevented the Bharatiya Janata Party’s return to power and Yadav became the Chief Minister. Differences, however, started emerging soon. In 1995, things came to a head when a group of SP workers allegedly attacked a guesthouse where Mayawati was holding a meeting with her party MLAs. Thereafter, the BSP walked out of the alliance, bringing down Mulayam’s government. Mayawati subsequently went in alliance with the BJP and became the Chief Minister with its support.
मेरे आदरणीय पिता जी और सबके नेता जी नहीं रहे। pic.twitter.com/jcXyL9trsM
— Akhilesh Yadav (@yadavakhilesh) October 10, 2022
The next two decades witnessed intense rivalry between the BSP and the SP.
However, in 2019 when the BJP juggernaut dwarfed every other political force in the northern belt, the BSP and the SP came together for the Lok Sabha polls.
The reunion saw Mayawati withdraw the two-decades-old case against Mulayam Singh Yadav for the attack on the Lucknow guesthouse. The two leaders were also seen sharing the dais from where they pledged unity and targeted the saffron party.
The alliance, however, ended on a bitter note as it managed to win only 15 seats and the Bharatiya Janata Party swept Uttar Pradesh with a tally of 62. Soon after, the BSP chief pulled the plug on the alliance and said it would contest the polls alone.
