Mayawati expels Akash Anand’s father in-law Ashok Siddharth from BSP for the second time

Lucknow: Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati has expelled former Rajya Sabha member Ashok Siddharth, the father-in-law of the party’s national coordinator Akash Anand, from the party. Coming ahead of the Uttar Pradesh elections, the disciplinary action also included the expulsion of BSP coordinator Randhir Singh Beniwal.

Mayawati accused Ashok Siddharth of repeatedly violating party discipline and ignoring organisational directives. She also alleged that he failed to discharge his responsibilities effectively in states such as Karnataka, Odisha, and West Bengal.

Before announcing the expulsions, Mayawati divested Ashok Siddharth of his responsibilities for Delhi, Karnataka, Odisha and Bengal. Similarly, senior leader Randhir Singh Beniwal was relieved of his charge of Punjab, Himachal Pradesh and Jammu & Kashmir. The party formally announced both expulsions through an official post on social media.

“In BSP, both Ashok Sidharth and Rajya Sabha member Ramji Gautam were emerging as two different lobbies in the party,” a party leader told ThePrint.

“Sidharth has Akash Anand and other young leaders on his side where Ramji Gautam has a backing of old guards, including Satish Mishra. So, some rift was going between these lobbies from long time. But Mishra has a more direct connect with Mayawati so Ramji Gautam’s lobby became successful in influencing Mayawati to take action again against Ashok Sidharth.”

This functionary also added that there were allegations that Siddharth’s camp was planting media reports that claimed Akash Anand would decide who the party would give election tickets to.

A member of the Rajya Sabha from 2016 to 2022, Siddharth has served as in-charge of various states. He was associated with the party for more than three decades.

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Mayawati clarifies

The BSP chief also sought to dispel speculation surrounding Akash Anand’s role in selecting candidates for the 2027 Uttar Pradesh elections.

Political circles had recently been set abuzz by claims that Akash Anand would be finalising party tickets. Rejecting these reports, Mayawati said Anand’s role is limited to addressing public meetings where already-selected candidates are introduced, and that it has “nothing to do with enhancing or reducing his stature” within the party.

Asserting that there was “not an iota of truth” in such claims, Mayawati urged party leaders and workers not to believe “baseless rumours” and “caste-driven propaganda” being circulated on social media about Anand,.

Mayawati made it clear that the authority to select BSP candidates for the Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls rests solely with her. She said she has personally chaired several state-level review meetings at the party’s Lucknow headquarters and has already interviewed and finalised more than two dozen candidates. She added that all remaining candidates would also be selected by her.

In a detailed post on X, Mayawati said the Assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh are approaching, and that she has been personally overseeing the party’s preparations. She said repeated attempts were being made to create confusion regarding Akash Anand’s position, but stressed that such claims were entirely false.

She further noted that Akash Anand has, over the past year, been assigned responsibilities such as reviewing the party organisation and addressing election rallies in different states under her direction. According to Mayawati, these assignments are part of the party’s routine organisational process and have no connection with deciding party candidates or altering Anand’s standing within the organisation.

Mayawati reiterated that, like other senior BSP functionaries, Akash Anand works under the guidance of the party president and has only been authorised to announce candidates already approved by the leadership at selected public meetings. She appealed to party workers to remain vigilant against what she described as “mischievous and casteist elements” spreading misinformation on social media.

(Edited by Nardeep Singh Dahiya)

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