Succession uncertainty plagues BSP as Mayawati vies with SP, Congress to woo Dalits

Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently gave Indian politics a new phrase. He called his opponents “naraz fufa”, the sulking husband of one’s father’s sister. It is a familiar Indian character, usually seen at weddings, upset because he was not given enough attention or because nobody asked his opinion. BJP leaders quickly picked up the phrase, mainly to target Rahul Gandhi, and social media did the rest.

But Uttar Pradesh has its own version of the story. Except this time, it is a bua (father’s sister), not a fufa, and her anger has for years been directed at her nephew, Akash Anand.

Akash was once hailed as Mayawati’s political heir and the face of the Bahujan Samaj Party’s next generation. But his position has changed repeatedly, with Mayawati blaming his father-in-law, former BSP MP Ashok Siddharth, for influencing him and saying that Akash listened to Siddharth more than he listened to her.

Siddharth has now announced his retirement from politics, which might have removed one of Mayawati’s main complaints. Instead, she said she was “freeing” Akash to decide his own political future, while his younger brother Ishan Anand has been given greater responsibility in the party. Akash has not been expelled, but he has effectively been pushed aside, which in the BSP is its own form of punishment.

The timing has left many party workers confused. Akash has recently been more cautious in his criticism of the BJP, but even this has not prevented friction with Mayawati. When he attacks the BJP strongly, she appears unhappy, and when he tones down his criticism, his position does not seem to improve either. Within party circles, Akash’s rather independent style seems to irk Behenji.

There is, however, a larger message in the repeated changes. Mayawati remains the sole authority in the BSP, and even the person presented as her successor can be pulled back whenever she chooses. The episode also shows how difficult it is for the party to plan a future beyond Mayawati when the question of succession itself remains uncertain.

This matters with the Uttar Pradesh election approaching. The BSP is already under pressure from the BJP, Congress and Samajwadi Party, as these parties have been actively wooing Dalit voters.

The Samajwadi Party has already been trying to occupy some of the political space associated with the BSP. Akhilesh Yadav gave his party’s student wing the colour blue, long associated with the BSP, and in 2019 he began referring to Mayawati as “bua”, presenting himself as her political nephew. She had also ended the alliance with the SP, while she considers the Congress a bigger threat to her political survival than the BJP.

The contest in Uttar Pradesh is not only about what the BJP and the SP do. It is also about what Mayawati does with her own political succession, because her real nephew may have once been named her heir, but he still has to earn his aunt’s trust. The repeated public playing out of her anger against Akash may only push core voters to seek alternatives, as they have done in the past. But given the nature of party politics and Behenji’s style, it would not be a surprise if Akash is back again. Of course, after undergoing penance.