Rampur:
The Samajwadi Party seems to be splitting down the middle, as its top leaders are targeting each other in public. Azam Khan, a founder member of the party and its Muslim face, is locked in a tough battle with SP general secretary and chief strategist Amar Singh.
It seemed a tough choice for Mulayam Singh, but on Saturday he hit out at Azam Khan in his bastion Rampur.
"When the right time came, the person whom we had trusted failed to support the party. Was this the right thing to do?" he said.
For Mulayam, trouble within his party couldn't have come at a worse time -- in the middle of elections. And despite his tough talk there seems to be no end to the crisis.
"He has hurt a person who had served him honestly and faithfully for the past 25 years," Azam Khan said.
But that shouldn't worry Amar Singh too much now that he has Mulayam's support. And the man, who just a day before threatened to quit the party, is now calling it an emotional outburst.
"Sometimes emotions overrule the orders given by leaders," Amar Singh said.
Thus, it has come as great news for Amar Singh that Samajwadi Party Chief Mulayam Singh toughened his stand against party colleague Azam Khan, accusing the leader of indulging in anti-party activities.