Azam Khan's Meeting with Akhilesh Yadav Signals Political Resilience and Unity in Samajwadi Party

The meeting represents the second significant encounter between the two leaders within a month. (File)

Samajwadi Party senior leader Azam Khan met with party president Akhilesh Yadav in Lucknow on Friday, stating that his visit aimed to communicate a message of resilience and highlight the necessity for justice and political transformation in Uttar Pradesh.

After the meeting, Khan told reporters, "The genuine purpose of our meeting was to demonstrate that despite facing oppression and unprecedented injustice, there remain individuals whose perseverance exceeds that of stone or mountain."

"Many of our colleagues are still imprisoned. When we gather, we remind each other of those difficult periods so future generations will remember such injustice occurred," explained Khan, who was joined by his son and former MLA Abdullah Azam.

The prominent SP leader, who recently gained freedom after almost two years of imprisonment on various charges including land grabbing and intimidation, expressed appreciation to certain media outlets for what he termed a "shift in perception." "Those who previously misinterpreted me now appear to recognize that tremendous injustice was inflicted upon us," he remarked.

Khan referenced the Income Tax raids at his residence and Jauhar University in Rampur, noting that officials "employed language that would cause any respectable person to lower their head in embarrassment." He continued, "Such misuse of government agencies must not recur. Until the political system improves and people comprehend what is truly occurring, injustice will persist. However, I perceive change. Those who once opposed me now visit me, embrace me, and shed tears. That signifies transformation."

Dismissing rumors that his Lucknow visit related to any court proceedings, Khan clarified, "There is no alternative motive. I came to meet Akhilesh Yadav and to convey through you a message that we advocate for change."

This encounter marks the second major meeting between the two leaders in a month. On October 8, Akhilesh Yadav traveled to Rampur to meet Khan, describing him as a "strong pillar" of the Samajwadi Party and pledging that, if elected to power, a future SP government would withdraw all false cases against Khan and others similarly targeted.

The 77-year-old Azam Khan, a founding member of the Samajwadi Party and close associate of the late party patriarch Mulayam Singh Yadav, was previously among the most influential ministers in SP-led governments of Uttar Pradesh.

During his incarceration and following his release from Sitapur jail, rumors circulated that Khan would depart from the SP due to tensions between him and Akhilesh Yadav. However, Khan has explicitly declined to make any such move.

(This article has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)