Akhilesh re-elected SP national president, says only SP can take on BJP

Amid indications of renewed attempts for truce in the family Samajwadi Party (SP) supremo Akhilesh Yadav was on Thursday unanimously re-elected the national president of the party at its forthcoming national convention in Agra.
 
An amendment effected in the SP constitution at the convention ensured that Akhilesh would remain national president of the party for a period of five years. The announcement to this effect was made by SP general secretary Ram Gopal Yadav.
 
Though SP patron and Akhilesh's father Mulayam Singh Yadav and the latter's younger brother and senior SP leader Shivpal Singh Yadav were not present at the convention, Akhilesh claimed that both of them had ''blessed'' him. ''Both Netaji (Mulayam) and Shivpal have given me their blessings,'' Akhilesh said.
 
Although Akhilesh had met Mulayam at latter's residence in what the sources termed an attempt to persuade him to attend the forthcoming national convention of the party at Agra, it was not yet clear if the SP patron would attend the same.
 
SP sources said that a section of the party was trying to broker a truce in the SP family and persuade Shivpal to accept Akhilesh's leadership in exchange for the post of general secretary.
 
After his re-election as national president of the party, Akhilesh said that only SP had the ''capability'' to ''take on'' the BJP in Uttar Pradesh as well as in the country.
 
''We will successfully counter BJP in UP...we will win more seats in the next Lok Sabha polls in the state,''  Akhilesh said.
 
He said that the faulty economic policies of the centre had rendered millions of people unemployed. ''Demonetisation and GST have ruined the small traders and businessmen,'' Akhilesh said.