Indian political stalwart Mulayam Singh Yadav dies, aged 82
NEW DELHI — Veteran Indian politician Mulayam Singh Yadav has died at the age of 82.
The former federal defense minister had been admitted to a private hospital near Delhi for more than a fortnight.
After his condition deteriorated, he was put on a ventilator. His son and political successor Akhilesh Yadav announced his death on Monday morning.
Politicians from across party lines, public figures and members of the public have paid tributes to one of the stalwarts of Indian politics.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi led the tributes with a tweet, remembering his meetings with the veteran leader.
India's main opposition Congress party said in a tweet in Hindi that Yadav's "death was an irreparable loss to Indian politics".
Yadav had been ailing for the past few years and was constantly in and out of hospitals. He was a serving MP but was not very active and was rarely seen in public.
He leaves a rich and controversial legacy behind as his regional Samajwadi Party (SP), now led by Akhilesh Yadav, continues to be a prominent player in Indian politics.
Mulayam Singh Yadav belonged to a generation of leaders who were born out of mass movements. He was known as a master strategist and his political moves kept both allies and opponents guessing.
He astutely mixed regional and federal politics to remain relevant throughout his active career.
His drive — combined with the skill to bounce back from seemingly hopeless political setbacks — made him a formidable adversary in Uttar Pradesh, India's most populous state.
In his long career, he was the state's chief minister three times and also served as India's defense minister. Like most strong regional leaders, he held the ambition to become India's prime minister, but that dream remained unfulfilled.
Since a bitter rift between his brother Shivpal Yadav and his son divided his Samajwadi Party in 2017, he largely remained away from the limelight. Although he was not in good health for the past few years, he remained an elected MP from the state.
Akhilesh Yadav is now the party's undisputed leader at a time when regional parties are reworking their political calculations to account for the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) popularity and undefeated streak in many states, including Uttar Pradesh.
A former wrestler, Mulayam Singh Yadav was known to pin his political opponents down with his understanding of grassroots politics and his ability to connect with the masses. At the same time, he had friends in most political parties.
But he was also prone to political gaffes. While campaigning for the 2014 general elections, he advocated that rape accused should not be hanged as "boys make mistakes". He later clarified that he was actually asking that anti-rape laws to be applied judiciously. But his clarification did not stop campaigners from criticizing him and questioning his stand on women's rights. — BBC
