Mulayam Singh Yadav, the founder of the Samajwadi Party died on Monday, October 10 at Gurugram’s Medanta Hospital. He was 82. 

The three-time Uttar Pradesh chief minister was admitted to the hospital on August 22. As his condition continued to deteriorate, he was shifted to the ICU on October 2. His son and current SP chief Akhilesh Yadav confirmed the news of his father’s passing. 

As news of the politician’s death broke, condolences began pouring in. Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted in remembrance of ‘Netaji’, as his followers liked to call him, saying that he was a “key soldier for democracy during the Emergency.”

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Who is Aparna Yadav?

Aparna Bisht Yadav is an Indian politician and a social activist, according to her website.  Born on February 5, 1989, in Uttarakhand, Aparna Bisht attended the City Montessori School in Lucknow. She later went on to study at the Loreto Convent Intermediate College. Later, she decided to attend Manchester University, where she completed a Masters degree in International Relations and Politics. 

Upon returning to India, she married Prateek Yadav, the stepson of SP founder Mulayam Singh Yadav. The two married in 2011 and have a daughter. 

Aparna’s first foray into politics was in 2017, when she contested the UP elections from Lucknow Cantonment as an SP candidate. However, she lost to the BJP’s Bahuguna Joshi. 

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Despite her belonging to one of the most powerful political families in UP, Aparna struck out on her own, spearheading her own safety initiative called bAware. The organisation works spreading awareness amongst women about their rights, laws and self-defence. 

After her defeat in the 2017 UP elections, Aparna joined the Bharatiya Janata Party in January 2022 just before the state’s assembly elections. Shortly after joining the BJP, she shared a picture of herself taking the blessings of Mulayam Singh before the UP assembly elections. 

Apart from politics, Aparna is also a trained classical musician and trained for nine years at the Bhatkhande Music Institute in Lucknow, with a specialisation in Thumri.