Mayawati said Akash Anand, who was the party’s chief national coordinator until a few weeks back, and his sister Deepika would be kept away from the party and there would be no change in her decision on this.
About a week back, she had said that neither of Anand Kumar’s sons, Akash and Ishan, would be allowed to hold any post in the BSP, which has been in the news the past few weeks due to the ongoing family tussle.
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In a post on her official X account on Sunday, Mayawati said, “Now, in the interest of the party, it would be appropriate to keep Akash Anand and his sister (Deepika) completely away from giving any responsibility in the party. There will be no change in this decision.”
“Now, in place of both of them, only Ishan Anand from Anand Kumar’s family will be given a respectable role in the party and taken forward. He will never have any problem like Akash Anand and his sister,” she said.
Mayawati, however, warned that if Ishan committed any serious anti-party act, he too would be expelled and “in such a situation, no other member of Anand Kumar’s family will be given any small or big responsibility in the party”.Referring to Akash, Mayawati said, “After his marriage, Akash Anand’s conduct and activities at every step have been such that because of this, he had to be separated from the party again a few days ago.”
“Now he (Akash) is completely caught in the web of his father-in-law Ashok Siddharth, and bringing him back into the party would be a very big betrayal of the BSP, which I can never commit,” she said.
Mayawati said she had been in a dilemma over whom from Anand Kumar’s family should be promoted in the party.
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“Now, in such a situation, whom to promote from Anand Kumar’s family or not had become quite a dilemma for me for some time. After putting an end to this, I have taken this decision after thinking seriously about every aspect,” she said.
She also said she had decided against seeking help from Deepika in future after her marriage, saying, “If after her marriage, her case also turns out to be like Akash Anand’s, then that too will not be in the interest of the party.”
On September 12, Mayawati had described her decision as her “final decision and pledge”, saying, “My final decision and pledge is that none of Anand Kumar’s sons in particular will be given an opportunity to do politics in the BSP while holding any small or big post.”
She had then said that if Anand Kumar needed the help of another family member in the future, he could seek assistance from his only daughter Deepika Anand, who is studying law.
Mayawati also invoked BSP founder Kanshi Ram, saying he had always kept his close relatives away from political benefits after entering politics.
“Inspired by him, I also decided to follow in his footsteps and dedicated my entire life to the ‘Bahujan Samaj’,” she said.
On September 10, Mayawati announced that her nephew Akash Anand, who is married to former Rajya Sabha member Ashok Siddharth’s daughter, had been completely relieved of his responsibilities in the BSP after Siddharth announced his retirement from political and social life. Mayawati had earlier expelled Siddharth from the party.
Mayawati’s younger brother, Anand Kumar is the party’s national vice-president. Mayawati first appointed him to the post in 2017, while stating that he would never become an MP, MLA, minister or chief minister.
She had also said at the time that Anand Kumar would not hand over his responsibilities to either of his sons or their children in the future.
