The accused have been identified as Gurpreet Singh of Mundian Khurd and Mulayam Singh, a resident of Shravasti in Uttar Pradesh; he was arrested on Sunday
Nineteen awardees were women, two were foreigners, non-resident Indians, people of Indian origin or overseas citizens of India, and seven laureates were honoured posthumously, said a statement by the Union home ministry.
The announcement was made by his son Akhilesh Yadav, who is the current SP chief. Soon after, tributes started pouring in from across the political circle.
Samajwadi Party founder Mulayam Singh's younger daughter-in-law Aparna Yadav had quit the party and joined the BJP a month before the UP assembly elections on January 19.