Samajwadi Party General Secretary Amar Singh resigned from all party posts on Wednesday, fueling the speculation about the growing differences between him and party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav.

-Jillian D'silva
January 8, 2010

Samajwadi Party leader Amar Singh resigned from the post of Party General Secretary on Wednesday, fueling the speculation about the growing differences between him and party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav. He also resigned from the party’s parliamentary board and as its spokesperson, citing "health reasons". The 53-year-old leader, who was considered the right hand man of Mulayam Singh Yadav, insisted that there is no political motive behind his resignation but appeared bitter about the party.

Singh, who is currently resting in Dubai after the kidney transplant he underwent in Singapore three months back, said he has resigned from all the three posts with immediate effect and has faxed his resignation to Mulayam Singh Yadav. Singh said he was resigning strictly as per the advice of his doctors, who have asked him to take complete rest, as he has just undergone a major operation.

Justifying his sudden resignation, "I hardly had any rest. Doctors told me it is not good. At the age of 53, I am entitled to earned leave and need to give more priority to my family. After 20 years of hard work, they (the family) should get priority over Mulayamji and the party." Singh insisted that he would not withdraw his resignation at any cost.

Following the Ferozabad by-elections, there was speculation that the relationship between Singh and Yadav had deteriorated further. However, Singh rubbished such speculations, stating, "There are no differences with Mulayam. I am very grateful to him for all the opportunities he has given to me and all my life I will not speak a word against him."

Previously, Singh used interviews and even his blog to voice his discontent towards the way the Samajwadi Party is being run. He had also openly said he was hurt that Mulayam Singh had not visited him in Singapore where he was undergoing treatment.

"Amar Singh or no Amar Singh, the party will do well. It has the capability," Singh said, adding that the party had many other General Secretaries.

On the other hand, Mulayam Singh sought to downplay the resignation of his deputy Amar Singh, terming it as an "internal matter" of the party and said that the issue will be discussed in the Parliamentary Board and executive committee.

Replying to queries about Singh's abrupt resignation, Mulayam said, "So what? There's nothing big in it if an office bearer resigns from the party's posts... He is still with the Samajwadi Party."

On being asked if he would persuade the leader to withdraw his resignation, he said that they "don’t share such a relationship".

Asked whether Singh had mentioned alleged differences with his brother and party senior leader Ram Gopal Yadav, the SP chief replied, "Band muthhi, dabi zabaan... ab yeh differences ki baat toh sabhi jaante hai. (My lips are sealed... everybody knows about these differences)."

Many party leaders including Azam Khan and actor-turned-politician Raj Babbar had the party largely on account of the desirable position that Mulayam Singh carved for exclusively for Amar Singh.

Former Uttar Pradesh minister Azam Khan, who remained the SP's most prominent Muslim face until his disgust with Amar Singh led him to march out of the party in 2009, said, "Amar Singh has done great service to the Samajwadi Party by stepping down from the General Secretary's position."

Many Samajwadi veterans privately spoke of how glad they were that the SP was out of Amar's "clutches".

"Nothing would move in the party without Amar Singh. Sometimes, it seemed that Mulayam would not even have a glass of water without seeking Amar Singh's nod," remarked a visibly happy senior functionary.

As they say, one man's loss is another man's gain. Amar Singh's sudden resignation has brought smiles on quite a few faces in the party as the covetable has just become available. But how will this move affect the functioning of the party? Will Singh join hands with another political party or will he run the show from backstage? This question can only be answered by the puppeteers themselves...