Son is neta

classes 11 and 12 in a Saifai college. Mulayam was a good sportsman, wrestler and even in class 11, called “Netaji” by fellow students, he remembers fondly.

Lohia had given a “jail bharo” call to protest against rising irrigation water rates, Mulayam offered himself for arrest, and was indignant when told he was too young to be sent to jail. “He’s been my student, my colleague, my leader. But now, he is not the same Mulayam Singh”, says Uday Pratap Singh. He will not say more, but his presence on stage in the party convention that unseated Mulayam as national president and anointed Akhilesh in his place, is being seen as an evocative symbol and giveaway of the Lucknow’s power shift.

Uday Pratap Singh may be holding back but many SP MLAS are coming out openly and aggressively in support of Akhilesh. On the other side, there is surly evasion broken only by careful hedging in those identified as belonging to the Shivpal-mulayam camp.

Like Manjhi, those who speak up for Akhilesh begin by reiterating their respect for Mulayam. And go on to make a distinction as clear as it is sharp. “Netaji is our leader, but the party’s neta is Akhilesh”, says Zahid Baig, SP’S Bhadohi MLA.

In his small apartment near the old secretariat office, keeping one eye on a flickering TV screen for the latest breaking news on the SP, Baig, explains: “We are there because of Netaji. But today, time and the people are with Akhilesh”.

The problem has been created, according to Baig, by party outsiders. “Netaji is a sentimental man, he is letting himself be pressured”, he says.

Sahab Singh Saini, minister and MLC from Saharanpur, who came to the SP from the Congress in 2009, also says that “Netaji is not doing this on his own, his hand is being forced”.

Among the achievements Saini lists of Akhilesh raj, is “Dial 100”: “UP has take a step for crime control that only a few other countries have. You can now dial 100 and a police vehicle will reach the scene of the crime within minutes.” There are other helplines in the Akhilesh government, but ‘Dial 100’ is most often cited by Akhilesh supporters for a reason.

The SP has long struggled with an image