New Delhi:

Bahujan Samaj Party chief Mayawati’s nephew Akash Anand is no longer her political heir or the party’s National Coordinator. The 29-year-old got dropped this evening, days after his comment comparing the BJP with Afghanistan’s ruling Taliban. His aunt, though, has left a small hope for reprieve, saying he is “being separated” from his responsibilities “until he attains full maturity”.

In a post in Hindi on X, formerly Twitter, this evening, Ms Mayawati said, “BSP is also a movement for self-respect and self-esteem of Baba Saheb Dr Bhimrao Ambedkar and social change for which Shri Kanshi Ram ji and I have dedicated our entire lives and a new generation is also being prepared to give it momentum.”

“In the same sequence, along with promoting other people in the party, I declared Shri Akash Anand as the National Coordinator and successor, but in the larger interest of the party and the movement, he is being separated from both these important responsibilities until he attains full maturity,” read her second post. His father, Anand Kumar, will continue to fulfil his responsibilities in the party, she added in a third post.

Mr Anand’s comments about the BJP had made headlines last week. A case was filed against him for Model Code violation.

“This government is a bulldozer government and a government of traitors,” he had said. “The party that leaves its youth hungry and enslaves its elderly is a terrorist government. Taliban runs such a government in Afghanistan,” the BSP leader had added. The BJP is a party of thieves that took Rs 6,000 crore through electoral bonds, he further alleged.

The district administration took note of the speech and a case of Model Code of Conduct violation was filed against Mr Anand and four others on Sunday. Three of the others were party candidates and the fourth was a leader who organised the rally where Mr Anand was speaking.

Shortly after that, Ms Mayawati cancelled all rallies Akash Anand and made sure he did not campaign in the election.

Ms Mayawati had named her nephew as her political heir in December last year. Her announcement today came as the third phase of the election came to an end. The BSP, which commands the support of a chunk of the state’s Dalits. The party is goibg solo in this election.

Akash Anand had officially entered politics in the run-up to the 2019 Lok Sabha election. Before that he had attended multiple BSP events and accompanied his aunt on the campaign for the 2017 Uttar Pradesh assembly election.

Haridwar:

A day after she joined the BSP and was named candidate from Haridwar Lok Sabha seat, Bhavna Pandey on Tuesday quit the party, dealing a blow to it.

Ms Pandey said she will join the BJP on March 28. “I will campaign for BJP candidate Trivendra Singh Rawat,” she told PTI.

Soon after Pandey quit the BSP, the Mayawati-led party declared Maulana Jameel Ahmed Kazmi, former party MLA in Uttar Pradesh, as its new candidate from Haridwar.

BSP chief Mayawati had also contested from Haridwar in 1984. She had garnered around 1.25 lakh votes but lost the polls.

The BJP has been winning Haridwar seat since 2014 general elections. It has fielded former chief minister Trivendra Singh Rawat from the seat this time, replacing Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank.

The Congress has fielded former chief minister and party veteran Harish Rawat’s son Virender Rawat from Haridwar.

Former journalist and independent MLA from Khanpur Umesh Kumar has also entered the fray from the seat as an Independent.

Mr Kumar had made a sting video of the then Chief Minister Harish Rawat in which he was seen negotiating a deal to buy back the support of rebel MLAs in 2016.

(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)