Setback for Yogi, ex-aide joins SP

Lucknow, January 18

Once seen as the right hand man of Yogi Adityanath, at least till he became the Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister three years ago, former chief of Hindu Yuva Vahini (HYV) Sunil Singh on Saturday joined the Samajwadi Party.

Singh was inducted into the SP in the presence of party chief Akhilesh Yadav and Samajwadi Party patriarch Mulayam Singh Yadav. Some BSP leaders also joined the SP at the party headquarters.

Singh, along with others, was expelled from the HYV, formed by Adityanath in 2002, on charges of indiscipline in 2017. He had then created a splinter outfit and declared himself as its national president.

Akhilesh said, “The days of the Adityanath government are numbered.” He said the BJP slapped cases against opposition leaders for opposing its policies.

Akhilesh said he was happy that HYV workers were with the SP now and hoped that they would unmask the real intentions of the BJP.

On the occasion, Mulayam termed the youth the future of his party and said that farmers, youth, traders and others had to be strengthened to make India a developed country. — PTI