LUCKNOW: BSP national president Mayawati on Sunday removed her nephew Akash Anand from all party posts, appointing his father Anand Kumar and Rajya Sabha MP Ramji Gautam as national coordinators in his place, and said she would not name a successor in her lifetime.
This was the second time she absolved Akash Anand of his responsibilities in the party. The first time was on May 7 last year, which was midway through the Lok Sabha elections, when Mayawati sacked Akash for “lack of maturity”. He was reinstated in the two roles on June 26.
In an all-India meeting of the party held in Lucknow on Sunday, Mayawati announced that from now on she will not have any successor in the party while she lives. Akash, however, was not present at the meeting on Sunday.
She had anointed Akash as her successor on December 10, 2023.
“The party is supreme and relations can come later,” said the former UP CM while removing Akash Anand from all party posts on Sunday.
Mayawati hit out at his father-in-law Ashok Siddharth and said he had divided the BSP into two groups and tried to weaken it, according to a party statement.
He also ruined the political career of Akash Anand, she said.
Her decision followed the expulsion of Akash’s father-in-law from the party on February 12. Former Rajya Sabha MP and an old-timer, Ashok Siddharth was expelled for promoting factionalism in the party.
Appreciating Anand Kumar, who is also the BSP’s national vice-president, she said he always worked with devotion for the party.
‘Be it paperwork, Income Tax, court issues, all are handled by Anand Kumar, who quit his government job. He also looked after (BSP founder) Kanshi Ram when he was ill,” she said.
Anand Kumar decided to marry his children into non-political families so that no one tries to damage the party like Siddharth did, she said.
Anand’s younger son, Ishan Anand, recently made his first public appearance in an organisational meeting of the party on January 15.
