Samajwadi Party MLA Manoj Kumar Pandey stepped down from his position as the party’s Chief Whip on February 27, a day after he failed to attend a crucial meeting convened by party chief Akhilesh Yadav regarding the Rajya Sabha elections. The elections, involving eight BJP candidates and three from the Samajwadi Party, were underway in Uttar Pradesh on the same day.
In a letter addressed to Mr. Yadav, Pandey, who represents the Unchahar constituency in Raebareli, stated, “You had appointed me as Chief Whip of Samajwadi Party in Uttar Pradesh Assembly. I am resigning as the Chief Whip. Kindly accept my resignation.” Pandey had previously served as a Cabinet Minister in the Akhilesh Yadav Government.
The meeting called by Mr. Yadav on February 26 aime to brief Samajwadi Party MLAs on the voting process for the Rajya Sabha elections. However, Pandey and seven other MLAs, namely Mukesh Verma, Maharaji Prajapati, Pooja Pal, Rakesh Pandey, Vinod Chaturvedi, Rakesh Pratap Singh, and Abhay Singh, were absent from the gathering.
A senior Samajwadi Party leader, speaking anonymously, revealed that the meeting was intended to provide crucial information about the Rajya Sabha voting process. Despite the absence of eight MLAs, the party’s national spokesperson, Rajendra Chaudhary, confirmed that the event had taken place but refrained from disclosing the names of the absentees.
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