LUCKNOW: Failing to win over the support of Samajwadi Party (SP) patriarch Mulayam Singh Yadav, his younger brother Shivpal Yadav’s newly launched Samajwadi Secular Morcha (SSM) removed Mulayam’s photo from its posters inviting people to participate in the ‘Vishal Gandhi Jayanti Yatra’ in Etawah on October 2.
However, Morcha leaders held the printing press responsible for the ‘error’.
Mulayam's pictures vanished from the SSM posters just two days after the SP patriarch shared stage with party president and son Akhilesh Yadav at a rally at Jantar Mantar in the national capital.
While the new posters and banners, put up at SSP Crossing in Etawah, carry photos of Shivpal and several disgruntled SP leaders, the photo of Mulayam is missing. The SSM leaders denied it was a deliberate move and clarified it as a printing mistake.
“Posters and banners are being put up by SSM well-wishers. They claim that picture of Netaji (Mulayam) has been mistakenly omitted by the printing press. “He is our inspiration and everything for us. We will rectify the mistake,” said a SSM leader.
The posters say the yatra will start at 7 am from Pachraha in Etawah and conclude at Numaish Maidan on October 2.
Mulayam’s appearance alongside son Akhilesh during the concluding event of a cycle rally in New Delhi on Sunday was seen as a setback to Shivpal, who floated SSM after being sidelined by his nephew.