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Rampur (Uttar Pradesh), October 8 (IANS) Samajwadi Party (SP) President Akhilesh Yadav met senior party leader Azam Khan on Wednesday at his residence in Rampur and described him as a ‘party beating’. He indicated a fresh effort to strengthen unity within the SP before the 2027 Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections.
This was Akhilesh’s first meeting with Azam Khan after an experienced leader’s release from jail after about 23 months.
The meeting held at Khan’s residence inside Johar University campus in Rampur took place amidst speculation that the former minister has become disillusioned with the SP leadership.
Talking to reporters after the meeting, Akhilesh Yadav said, “Azam Khan is a party beat. He has been implicated in false cases. The BJP has registered so many cases against him and his family that his name should be recorded in the Guinness Book of World Records.”
He further said that under the present BJP government, the PDA (Backward, Dalit and Minorities) community feel humiliated and isolated.
“Azam Khan is a senior leader, like a strong tree that stands firmly despite storms. He and his family have faced the most false cases among political families. They are eligible for justice,” Akhilesh said, Akhilesh said, he said that the Samajwadi Party will return to power in 2027 and continue raising the voice of PDA communities.
When Azam Khan was asked if he was disillusioned with the Samajwadi Party, he said, “Where did you get this information from?”
Security in Rampur has been tightened in Rampur for Akhilesh’s visit. Police personnel were deployed around Johar University and Azam Khan’s residence and media reach was banned.
Despite this, a large number of SP workers gathered and raised slogans in support of the two leaders.
Political observers are looking at this meeting as a strategic move to strengthen the Muslim vote bank in western Uttar Pradesh, especially in Rampur, Moradabad and Amroha, where Azam Khan has considerable influence.
Azam Khan, the founding member of the SP and close to the late Mulayam Singh Yadav, was jailed for nearly two years in several cases. His return to active politics and reconciliation with Akhilesh Yadav is being seen as a symbolic sign of reconciliation and revival within the party.
-IANS
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