Yadav vs Yadav: The son also rises

The father-son relationship between Mulayam Singh Yadav and Akhilesh has never exactly been a walk in the park but as Akhilesh starts to come into his own as a politician, their differences have spilled over into the public domain, increasingly stark and bitter.

The 43-year-old CM let the cat out of the bag when he claimed he has earned a name for himself through his own efforts.

Rewind to the year of Akhilesh's birth, a time when Mulayam was climbing the political ladder Akhilesh's mother Malti Devi's health started deteriorating when he was still quite young. The locals of Saifai, from where the family hails, say she fell into depression after Sadhana Gupta entered Mulayam's life when he was in Luchnow. According to sources close to Mulayam, it was around 1980 when Mulayam and Sadhana Gupta became very close. Akhilesh was all of 10 at the time.

According to these sources, Malti Devi came to Lucknow only once, for treatment, after Mulayam became CM in 1989. Meanwhile, Akhilesh was sent to a hostel for studies.

Akhilesh joined politics in 2000 and was elected MP from Kannuj. A decade later, his name was finally proposed for state party president at the Agra convention. Amar Singh's era was over, and his father's cousin Ram Gopal Yadav stood with him.

During the 2012 Assembly elections. Akhilesh protested against the infamouse D P Yadav joining the Samajwadi Party, finally showing his stature to other party members. Following the party's big win, Akhilesh also garnered most of the credit for his relentless statewide campaign.

This was also a time when the number of younger voters was increasing, not only in the state but across the nation. The generational change was evident in the Congress, too, where Rahul Gandhi started taking a more active role.

In such circumstance, Mulayam Singh decided to passs the baton to Akhilhesh, but it was only a matter of time before opponents made their presence felt. As Pratik Yadav, Akhilesh's stepbrother, started to step up, the CM's decisions were increasingly critiqued, even changed or overlooked.

Akhilesh Yadav's public image went from being the 'youngest CM' to the 'weakest CM'. The drubbing in the 2014 Parliamentary elections provided the anti-Akhilesh group with more ammunition. Internally, they started asking for a change of CM, arguing that going into the 2017 Assembly elections under Akhilesh's leadership would mean a loss for both the party and of the government.

Akhilesh, say sources, also realises that 2017 elections will play a significant role in deciding his political future, particularly after Mulayam declared that 'Akhilesh is not the face of CM'. Other leaders, however, came forward and said that Akhilesh would be the CM candidate. But everyone was waiting for a statement from Mulayam, which came on Tuesday, when he said that, "Party and family are united" but dithered in the CM issue, only saying "First let us get majority and then elected representatives will select their CM".

Left with two options – forming a new party or strengthening his position within the SP – Akhilesh seems to have chosen the latter. But the questions remain about the quality of his governance for the rest of his term. After all, how much can he improve his report card by inaugurating new projects in the limited time before the elections?

Akhilesh and his team still haven't decided what to do – take direct action or adopt an backdoor approach? A section of his believes that direct action will create an honest and strict image while the others feel a rearguard action through PIL and CBI investigations will force Mulayam to expel him from his party and family. This, in turn, will help him, project himself as a victim. Either way, it is a decision that will stay with Akhilesh for a long time to come.