Mulayam loyalists in Delhi to secure cycle symbol

Loyalists of Samajwadi Party patriarch this morning started up lining in the national capital to ensure that the 'cycle' symbol remains with Mulayam Singh Yadav against the backdrop of Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav seeking to take control of the party.

Amar Singh and Shivpal Singh Yadav, who were expelled from the party by the Akhilesh camp, have reached Delhi to fine tune the strategy to ensure that the symbol remains with Mulayam ahead of assembly polls in the state likely to be announced any day now.

Talking to reporters after returning from London, Amar said, "I was and will remain with Mulayam Singh Yadav. I was a hero. But I am now ready to become a khalnayak (villain) for him."
 

Asked about his expulsion from the party by the Akhilesh camp, Amar said he will feel "hurt" only if Mulayam says anything against him.

"Once Mulayam Singh Yadav said that Amar Singh is not in our 'dal' (party) but in our 'dil' (heart). If Mulayam Singh Yadav expels me from his 'dil' then it will be regretful. There is no importance of party for me," Amar said.

Taking a dig at some leaders, he said, "I never demanded Rajya Sabha seat from the party unlike other leaders who, with folded hands, pleaded for a berth in Rajya Sabha".

Meanwhile, Shivpal, who has been removed as the UP unit chief of SP by the Akhilesh camp, said he would continue to be with Mulayam. "I will be with Mulayam till my last breath," he said upon his arrival in Delhi.

The two, along with Mulayam and a few other leaders, will meet in the afternoon before approaching the Election Commission to ensure the symbol remains with Mulayam and is neither frozen or given to the Akhilesh camp.