Bukhari-Azam clash sees intriguing silence by Mulayam Singh Yadav

LUCKNOW: Even as senior Samajwadi Party leader and urban development minister Azam Khan seemed to have backed out in his war of words with Shahi Imam of Delhi's Jama Masjid, Maulana Syed Ahmed Bukhari the latter seemed in no mood to let matters pass easily.

The intriguing silence of SP supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav and his son Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav on the issue has also led to the perception that Azam Khan was alone in his clash of ego's with Maulana Bukhari.

On the other hand Mulayam spoke to Maulana Bukhari more than twice during the last few days while ignoring any need to reach out to Khan. Clearly, the SP leadership thinks that Khan exceeded his brief by taking on Maulana Bukhari when matters could have been sorted out much easily.

Maulana Bukhari on his part has made it clear that the fresh round of tension between the two Muslim faces associated with the SP started when he wrote a letter to Yadav rejecting the nomination of his son in law Umer Ali Khan as an MLC on the grounds that more Muslims should have been nominated. Bukhari feels that the letter was addressed to SP President Mulayam Singh Yadav and Khan should not have jumped into the issue.

Bukhari kept up the pressure on Wednesday when he refused the request of the SP leadership to come down to Lucknow for a meeting to sort things over. With several Muslim MLA's opposed to Azam Khan's arrogant ways rallying behind Bukhari, Azam Khan a founder member of the SP finds himself increasingly isolated.

"I had expected the party leadership and the government to take a stand when I was being attacked. I am a leader of the SP and a minister and both the party and the government should have defended me" said a visibly hurt Azam Khan clearly indicating that SP president Mulayam Singh Yadav and Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav should have intervened to stop Bukhari from making remarks against him.

Both Bukhari and Azam Khan share along history of animosity vying to represent the Muslim community. Bukhari had come out in support of Mulayam Singh Yadav in the run up to the recently concluded assembly polls. His son in law Umer was also given a ticket to contest from Behat in Saharanpur but he lost.

Mulayam then nominated him for the legislative council which Bukhari rejected saying more Muslims should be sent to the council and Rajay Sabha inviting remarks from Azam Khan that he was lobbying for more berths for his family members.