Akhilesh Yadav in Mysore - A Humble Son of a Strongman

Mulayam Singh Yadav, a trained wrestler who is largely known among the erudite circle as the strongman who made his way through muscle power, often with the help of goons who were patronized by him.

Infamous for comments like “Boys will be boys” in response to rape, and having proximity to dubious characters like Amar Singh, Subrata Roy, Azam Khan, Pappu Yadav, and many more, Mulayam is more a villain than a hero in India’s political history.

It is another matter that he, along with other Lohiaties like Lalu Yadav, Sharad Yadav, and Nitish Kumar fundamentally shifted the politics of India, by helping the Backward Castes (in a major way, the Muslims) to break away from the Congress, and in a way starting a social revolution.

But behind this widely accepted image of a tough man who used rough methods, one thing stands out – and that involved his son, Akhilesh Yadav. In a time when the children of the prominent functionaries of a political party which has taken over itself the job of being the custodian of the Sanskriti, Akhilesh and his stint in Mysore between 1990-94 is an exception.

Just look at this:

-????????? The son of the Union Minister of State for Home is in custody on murder charges

-????????? The son of a prominent national leader beat up the local councilor with a cricket bat, and then brazen it out in the name of better governance

-????????? The son of an MLA raids an event accuses the performer of making objectionable comedy, pulls him to the police station, makes him lodged in court for weeks, and then himself gets elected as an MLA

-????????? The daughter of MLA, on being stopped by the traffic police, gets down from the car, threatens them saying the father is an MLA, and dares them to come home to collect the find (which incidentally is a long list)

Contrast that with Akhilesh Yadav, when he joined JSS Science and Technology University at Mysore in 1990, to study Civil Environmental Engineering. He was there till 1994, post which he moved to Australia for a Master’s in the same space.

During their four years, Mulayam Singh Yadav was the CM of UP in 1991, 92, and 94. But seems hardly anyone knew about it when Akhilesh was there.

All the recounting about Akhilesh from his teachers, friends, and the parents of other students who he met then are unanimous – Akhilesh was a low profile, average private student, hung around with a few friends, did not participate much in institute activities, and had been very humble.

A quick search on the net will throw up anecdotes on how he was ready to do not just his things but everything, clear out a garage to study, sit down on the floor, and engage with all he used to meet. Incidentally, Mulayam Singh, when he came to meet Akhilesh on one occasion on a Sunday, made sure no one was disturbed while he just spent time with his son. By Akhilesh’s funny recount on a visit to the college, he failed in six of the seven subjects in the first term, had to write 15 papers in the next (where he passed 11 of them), and worked hard to clear all with a 70% marks by the fourth year.

While revealing – isn’t it? Son of a Hindi heartland political satrap, while father being the CM of the most populous Badlands of UP and surely one of the most powerful people in the country then, was living a nondescript life in Mysore? Was it that behind the dry and coarse exterior, Mulayam had a soft heart soaked in middle-class values, which he wanted to pass on to his progeny? Not sure, but we can only guess. But of course, the contrast with the brat princelings of today is very telling.