The war of words between Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Brajesh Pathak and Samajwadi Party (SP) president Akhilesh Yadav has continued to rage for several days, with both camps slugging it out bitterly leading to registration of an FIR and even Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath wading into the row.
The showdown between the two parties intensified last week when the SP’s official X handle made a personal attack on Pathak after he alleged that the SP’s “DNA” was linked to “Muslim appeasement” and “nexus with mafia”.
The SP media cell’s post triggered protests by the BJP workers and led to the filing of an FIR against its handler, even as Pathak hit back, asking Akhilesh “if this was the language of their party”.
Pathak said that such remarks did not seem to come from the party of Ram Manohar Lohia and Janeshwar Mishra. Calling them “so-called socialists”, he advised Akhilesh to make the SP leaders read the works of the socialist icons like Lohia and Jayaprakash Narayan or JP.
On Saturday night, Akhilesh, in an X post, stated that he has taken assurance from his party members not to post any derogatory remarks. He hoped that Pathak would also stop making the kind of statements that triggered the DNA row, which did not “justify the dignity and the decency” of his position.
He also charged that Pathak’s remarks hurt their religious sentiments, telling him that “We are Yaduvanshis related to Lord Krishna, your attack on our DNA hurts us religiously”.
The SP chief said: “Taking cognisance of the comment on UP Deputy Chief Minister, we at the party level have asked for an explanation from those who lost their temper after being hurt by his extremely indecent comment on the ‘DNA of socialists’. We have taken assurance from them that this will not happen again, but we hope that the kind of statements he makes continuously will also stop.”
On Monday morning, Pathak, in a fresh post, told Akhilesh what his comments meant. “Akhilesh Yadav ji… by problem in DNA, we do not mean any particular person, but the political thinking of your party. Problem in DNA means that the foundation of your party’s politics has been based on casteism and appeasement and it still is,” he alleged.
With the SP wooing Dalits as part of its PDA (Pichhda, Dalit, Alpsankhyak) campaign, the BJP leader also alleged that “Your party’s DNA is against Dalits”, asking Akhilesh to take corrective measures since otherwise it would bring him trouble in the 2027 UP Assembly polls.
In his response, Akhilesh while advising Pathak to first work on his “political health”, claimed that “neither he (Pathak) nor his community (Brahmins) are liked by those in power in UP”.
As part of his PDA push, Akhilesh has been trying to even reach out to the Brahmin community.
He also gave a call to all those belonging to the PDA, urging them to unite for “positive politics” and form a “PDA government” to bring “the rule of social justice”. In an attack on Pathak, who was earlier with the BSP,
the SP chief stated that those who were not consulted in their own party and labelled their own ministry as a “failure” indulged in “useless talks”.
Rising in Pathak’s defence then, CM Adityanath, in an X post, stated: “Although it is futile to expect any ideal conduct from the Samajwadi Party, but civilised society cannot tolerate their indecent and vulgar statements. The top leadership of the Samajwadi Party should thoroughly review their social media handles and ensure that the language used there is decent, restrained and dignified.”
Pathak kept his guns trained on Akhilesh Tuesday, alleging again that the SP’s DNA was rooted in “appeasement” and “criminal patronage”.
In an X post, he dared the SP chief to respond directly rather than deflect the matter, adding “If you have no answer, apologise and let the matter rest”.
The Deputy CM alleged that the SP’s past had been linked to mafia dons Atiq Ahmed and Mukhtar Ansari, the 2013 Muzaffarnagar riots, police firing on kar sevaks during the Ram Janmabhoomi movement, and various alleged “scams”.
He also claimed that it was Atiq Ahmed who had acted as a “mediator” between Akhilesh and his father and SP founder late Mulayam Yadav to resolve their differences.
It is not the first time that the SP leaders and Pathak have entered into a verbal duel. During the last several Assembly sessions, the SP MLAs have stormed the well or staged a walkout while objecting to various remarks made by Pathak on different issues.
