Samajwadi Party (SP) supremo, and former Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, Mulayam Singh Yadav died on Monday, after a prolonged illness. He passed away at the age of 82. Mulayam Singh was admitted to Gurugram's Medanta hospital in August 2022. Akhilesh Yadav, leader of SP and son of Mulayam Singh Yadav, took to his Twitter handle and said, “My respected father has passed away.” The last rites of the SP supremo would be held at Saifai on Tuesday. Mulayam Singh Yadav, fondly called Netaji and Pehlwan Ji by his admirers was born in Saifai, Etawah. He stepped into politics after being inspired and motivated by Dr. Ram Manohar Lohia’s socialist ideas and beliefs. Here're 10 lesser-known facts about Mulayam Singh Yadav:
Mulayam Singh Yadav was born on 22 November 1939 in Saifai village, Etawah district of Uttar Pradesh.
SP Supremo, held 3 degrees- B.A., B.T., and M.A. in political science. The socialist leader, initially wanted to become a wrestler, but eventually developed an interest in Politics, after getting inspired by the ideas of socialist Ram Manohar Lohia.
Gradually he entered the sphere of politics, and registered his first electoral victory in 1967. He won a seat in the lower chamber of the Uttar Pradesh assembly.
Mulayam Singh served as an MLA 10 times and an MP 7 times. He also served as the defence minister, and thrice as the UP CM. During the Emergency in 1975, he was arrested and remained behind the bars for 19 months.
Being a strong voice for the protection of rights and welfare of farmers, laboruers, youths, students, minorities, and backward classes, he had been jailed 9 times following different protests.
In 1977, he became the president of the Lok Dal (People's party) in UP, and in 1980, he was elected as the president of the Janata Dal (JD). In 1985, he formed 'Krantikari Morcha', following the split of the Lok Dal Party. In 1989, Janata Dal formed the government in UP with the outside support of the BJP,
and Mulayam became the Chief Minister. However, in 1991, the government fell.
On 30 October 1990, Mulayam Singh's government ordered firing on unarmed Karsevaks in Ayodhya who had assembled for construction of Ram temple at the then disputed Ram janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid site. According to official records, 28 Karsevaks lost their lives in this police firing.
Justifying the police firing, Mulayam Singh, in 2017, said: "If more people were required to be killed for the country's unity and integrity, the security forces would have done it."
In 1992, SP supremo launched his second party, the 'Samajwadi Party'. After the demolition of the disputed structure in Ayodhya in 1992, SP emerged as the advocate for the Muslims, who credited him for supporting them when the Congress government in New Delhi failed to protect the Babri structure.
In his political career, Mulayam Singh became the chief minister of UP thrice. In 2021, a movie named 'Main Mulayam Singh Yadav' was released showcasing the political journey of Mulayam Singh Yadav.
