Won't name successor: Mayawati removes nephew from key post

DAYS after expelling Ashok Siddharth, a close relative and the father-in-law of her "heir apparent," Akash Anand, Bahujan Samaj Party chief Mayawati implemented another shakeup by dismissing her nephew, Akash Anand, from his position as national coordinator.

- NAMITA BAJPAI

DAYS after expelling Ashok Siddharth, a close relative and the father-in-law of her "heir apparent," Akash Anand, Bahujan Samaj Party chief Mayawati implemented another shakeup by dismissing her nephew, Akash Anand, from his position as national coordinator. "I will not announce my successor until my last breath and will continue to handle party affairs myself," she stated.

The BSP chief, under whose leadership the party graph has been dwindling relentlessly since 2012, replaced Akash with her brother and Akash's father, Anand Kumar. Another senior party leader, Rajya Sabha MP Ramji Gautam, was also appointed as the party's national coordinator. The former CM chief attributed the action against Akash Anand to his closeness with his expelled father-in-law Ashok Siddharth.