Gayatri Prajapati is back as minister in the UP cabinet two weeks after Akhilesh Yadav sacked him.
Highlights
- Akhilesh Yadav sacked Gayatri Prajapati over allegations of corruption
- Cabinet expansion will be held today to fill 3 places in Mr Yadav's team
- Mr Prajapati is seen as close not only to Shivpal, but also Mulayam Singh
Akhilesh Yadav deftly avoided a diving Gayatri Prajapati as the controversial Samajwadi Party leader attempted to touch the Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister's feet after being sworn in as a minister today. Thrice.
Mr Prajapati then fell at the feet of the Chief Minister's father and Samajwadi Party boss Mulayam Singh Yadav, who said, "Blessings for all."
Mr Prajapati - who fervently said "Netaji (Mulayam Singh) is the best" - is back as minister in the UP cabinet two weeks after Akhilesh Yadav sacked him over allegations of corruption. He was one of ten ministers who took oath today.
Gayatri Prajapati's sacking had set in motion a turf war between with Akhilesh Yadav and his uncle Shivpal Yadav, in which the 44-year-old Chief Minister came out worse for wear. Mainly because his father backed favourite younger brother Shivpal, forcing the Chief Minister to roll back a series of decisions he took.
Three days after he had divested Shivpal Yadav of important portfolios, Akhilesh Yadav had to announce that he was returning most of them. Shivpal Yadav also got to keep the powerful post of the party's UP unit chief months before crucial assembly elections are held in the state. He replaced Akhilesh Yadav.
In what was seen as the biggest blow, Mulayam Singh Yadav has appointed as his party's national general secretary Amar Singh, a man he once threw out of the party. Akhilesh Yadav has blamed Amar Singh - "outsiders," he said, without taking names - for what he called "misunderstandings in the family."
Gayatri Prajapati is seen as close not only to Shivpal Yadav, but also Mulayam Singh, and his removal as minister had signaled rebellion by Akhilesh Yadav. But in bringing him back into the cabinet, Mr Yadav risks attacks by the opposition. Gayatri Prajapati faces CBI inquiry into allegations of illegal mining.
Akhilesh Yadav, who has been severely criticised for poor law and order in UP, has been attempting an image makeover before his party seeks re-election in UP.