 "Akhilesh ready for any 'test', cautions SP against 'damage'")
As the power tussle between him and his uncle Shivpal played out in open on the silver jubilee celebrations of the Samajwadi Party, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav on Saturday said he was ready for any test and cautioned against "damage" to the party.
"I will not reply to certain things. Ram Manohar Lohia ji used to say he would be heard but only after death. I want to say that people will hear but only after everything is damaged," Akhilesh said addressing an event on the occasion.
His remarks came after Shivpal Yadav took a swipe at his nephew, saying some people inherit power without doing anything while others get nothing despite making sacrifices.
Akhilesh said, "If you want to take my test, I am ready for anything. Our target is to defeat BJP and BSP in 2017 elections. This UP election will decide future of the country", he said.
"The party (BJP) which got over 70 (out of 80) seats in Lok Sabha polls did nothing for the state except giving model villages scheme. BJP created differences in the society by Muzaffarnagar and Kairana incidents. SP will return in UP and will not let such forces to rise," he added.
The SP has been battling a family feud between Akhilesh and Shivpal. While Mulayam has been insisting that all is well in the party, both Shivpal and Akhilesh have been making statements exposing the rift in the party.
In a bid to portray a united front ahead of the 2017 state Assembly elections, the feuding first family had come together on Thursday to flag off Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav's 'rath yatra' in Lucknow. Party patriarch Mulayam Singh Yadav and Shivpal, with whom the Chief Minister was locked in a bitter power struggle, had extended him "best wishes".