Won't Name Successor In My Lifetime: Mayawati

Lucknow: BSP chief Mayawati on Sunday removed her nephew Akash Anand from all party posts, appointing his father Anand Kumar and Rajya Sabha MP Ramji Gautam as national coordinators in his place, and said she would not name a successor in her lifetime. The party is supreme and relations can come later, said the former Uttar Pradesh chief minister, who had sacked Akash Anand last year only to later reinstate him and appoint him her political successor.

Removing Akash Anand from all party posts, Mayawati hit out at his father-in-law Ashok Siddharth and said he had divided the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) into two groups and tried to weaken it, according to a party statement. He also ruined the political career of Akash Anand, she said. Mayawati last month expelled Siddharth from the BSP on charges of factionalism and anti-party activities. She said she would not name a successor in her lifetime. The party and the movement are supreme and relations like brother, sister and their children come later, she added.

Mayawati appointed her brother Anand Kumar and Ramji Gautam as national coordinators to oversee party affairs across India. Appreciating Anand Kumar, who is also the BSP's national vice-president, she said he always worked with devotion for the party. "Be it paperwork, Income Tax, court issues, all are handled by Anand Kumar, who quit his government job. He also looked after (BSP founder) Kanshi Ram when he was ill," she said. Anand Kumar decided to marry his children into non-political families so that no one tries to damage the party like Siddharth did, she said.