Shivpal sacks another Akhilesh Yadav loyalist from SP for indiscipline

Lucknow: The feud in the Samajwadi Party showed no signs of ending with state unit chief Shivpal Yadav on Wednesday expelling Tej Narain Pandey alias Pawan Pandey from the party for six years minister. Pandey is considered close to Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav.

Pawan Pandey had clashed with SP MLC Ashu Malik at party meet and also beaten him up. "Pawan Pandey is being expelled from Samajwadi Party for six years on charges of indiscipline," Shivpal announced at a press conference at the party headquarters here.

Shivpal said he has written a letter to the chief minister requesting him to sack Pandey from his ministry.

Replying to questions, Shivpal maintained there was no dispute in the Samajwadi Party and the Mulayam family.

Pandey had allegedly beaten up SP MLC Ashu Malik. Malik had alleged that he was slapped by him at the chief minister’s residence.

"Chief minister Akhilesh Yadav had called me to clarify things related to a news article published in an English daily wherein Akhilesh Yadav was referred to as Aurangzeb and SP Chief Mulayam Singh as Shahjahan," Malik had told reporters after the incident.

"When I was at CM?s residence, party leader Pawan Pandey came and attacked me. He slapped me twice," he said.

"I was asked to show up as the chief minister wanted to clarify things related to the news article in front of people but my presence was misunderstood by others," he said.

Malik said that Akhilesh was not present at his residence when the incident took place. Malik had lodged a written complaint against Pandey accusing him of attacking him, but no FIR has been registered in the matter so far.

Shivpal's latest move to expel Pandey, who is close to Akhilesh, comes a day after SP chief Mulayam Singh Yadav sought to project an 'all is well' image. The "party and family are united", he had said.

Mulayam had strongly defended party MP Amar Singh, who is being blamed by the Akhilesh faction for the problems in the family, asking "why to drag him in all this"?

"My family and party are united. All workers are united. There are some conspirators, who do not have any mass base," Mulayam told a hurriedly convened press conferences.

"There is not 'matbhed' (difference) or 'manbhed' (ill feelings) among our leaders," Yadav said. Asked whether Shivpal and other sacked ministers would then be reinstated in the Akhilesh cabinet, he had said, "I leave this to CM.... You ask him why he made them ministers and why he sacked them."

Pandey termed the charges levelled against him as false and part of a conspiracy.

"I might have been expelled from the party through a piece of paper but SP chief Mulayam Singh Yadav and chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav will always remain in my heart...I have no regrets over the expulsion," he told news persons.

The expelled leader said charges have been levelled against him as part of some conspiracy.

"Ashu Malik has cited in the police complaint that he was beaten up outside the CM's residence...CCTV cameras are installed all over the place and media was also present there on that day...if the footage is checked the reality will come to light," he stressed.