SP dissolves Kannauj unit after PDA conference draws sparse crowd

The conference was convened by SP state chief Shyamlal Pal at the party office in Kannauj, the parliamentary constituency of national president Akhilesh Yadav. A stage was set up and hundreds of chairs were arranged for workers and leaders. While district office-bearers occupied the dais, most of the chairs in front remained vacant.

The Samajwadi Party dissolved its entire district unit in Kannauj and removed all office-bearers from the constituency on Sunday evening after a PDA workers’ conference organised there drew sparse attendance, with videos of empty chairs going viral on social media.

Screengrab of a viral video showing empty chairs at the PDA conference in Kannauj. (Sourced)

The conference was convened by SP state chief Shyamlal Pal at the party office in Kannauj, the parliamentary constituency of national president Akhilesh Yadav. A stage was set up and hundreds of chairs were arranged for workers and leaders. While district office-bearers occupied the dais, most of the chairs in front remained vacant.

Videos and photographs of the poorly attended event quickly circulated online, triggering embarrassment within the party. Kannauj holds significance for the Yadav family as both Akhilesh and Dimple Yadav have repeatedly been elected from the seat, and Akhilesh continues to represent it in the Lok Sabha.

According to highly placed sources in the Samajwadi Party, the local leaders and workers treated the programme casually because of their direct connection with Akhilesh Yadav.

Many reportedly view him as the sole face of the party in the district and did not make adequate efforts to mobilise workers for an event addressed by the state president. As a result, the conference failed to attract a meaningful crowd, sources said.

Reacting to the episode, the party leadership dissolved the entire Kannauj organisational unit and relieved all office-bearers of their posts. The action is seen as a message that party discipline will not be compromised, regardless of proximity to the top leadership.

This is not the first time the Samajwadi Party has taken such a step. The district units of Etah and Kasganj were earlier dissolved after senior leaders were perceived to have asserted independent influence and engaged in confrontations in the presence of Akhilesh Yadav.

In Gorakhpur, the unit was disbanded following a viral video that showed a party leader from the Thakur community publicly assaulting a Nishad community leader during a party programme.

Meanwhile, BJP leaders took a dig at the SP regarding the Kannauj video, claiming it shows that the PDA (Pichhda, Dalit, Alpsankhyak) plank lacks grassroots support even in Akhilesh Yadav’s home constituency.

Minister Danish Azad Ansari said, “The Samajwadi Party has always cheated the PDA classes and it has now been exposed in front of the people. Dalit or minority communities were overlooked when it chose a wealthy person and a family member.”