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She was seen to be in the Shivpal camp, taking on Akhilesh Yadav. How does Aparna Yadav, Mulayam's ‘Chhoti Bahu’ respond to the charge that she was one of the reasons for tension between the UP CM and his father?
In this interview to Barkha Dutt, she insists she wants to be the “Fevicol” of the family. She also speaks about why she praised the party’s opponent, the Prime Minister, and took a selfie with him, takes questions on her husband Prateek’s Lamborghini, and explains her politically controversial take on reservations.
Also Watch: Barkha’s Big Exclusive with Akhilesh Yadav
Arpana has been at the centre of the Yadav family feud, with some holding her responsible for the tiff. Dismissing the speculation, Aparna said that she wants to be the “Fevicol” of the family.
"Rishton mein kuch meetha ho jaaye," she said, laughing about her living the Cadbury Dairy Milk ad – and bringing the Yadav parivar closer – as India's largest state goes to polls.
Seated in the narrow lanes of Sadar Bazar in Lucknow amidst a crowd of her supporters, Aparna told Barkha:
Aparna, a student of Political Science and Sociology, spoke about witnessing the huge SP rallies outside Loreto Convent where she studied. She did not intend to join politics, but had a moment of reckoning when she voiced her opposition against caste-based reservations proposed by Congress leader Arjun Singh, suggesting that it should be based on economic status rather than just caste.
Undaunted by the political jargon of reservation that politicians use before polls, Aparna said:
She said her “straightforward nature” is both appreciated by some and irritating to others.
On allegations of being a supporter of Prime Minister Narendra Modi after a selfie with the PM went viral, she laughed it off, saying that everybody had clicked selfies with Modi but somehow only hers went viral.
Voicing her disappointment with demonetisation, Aparna said that while she had supported PM Modi’s Swachh Bharat campaign, she is dead against the currency ban, which took a heavy toll on the public.
Aparna’s husband Prateek’s Lamborghini gained notoriety while Akhilesh and their father Mulayam fought over the ‘cycle’ symbol. For a party that looks to attract supporters with their modest ‘cycle’, Aparna is the richest candidate to contest from UP, with assets worth Rs 23 crore.
She said her husband prefers to be a businessman and shouldn't be expected to join politics just because he belongs to the Yadav family.
It's not easy for women to be policy-makers, with current protests in Nagaland against women's reservations in ULB polls being a shining indication of the depth of the problem.
Aparna, who was leading a padyatra campaign, said she wants to tell her female supporters to leave their household chores behind and exercise their right to vote first.
BJP leader Rita Bahuguna Joshi, Aparna’s rival candidate for the constituency of Lucknow Cantt, has blamed Yadav nepotism for Aparna's rise up the political ladder. But as for Aparna, she wears the tag of beti before bahu.
Camerapersons: Abhay Sharma, Puneet Bhatia & Vijay Bedi
Producers: Shadab Moizee
Video Editors: Mohd Irshad Alam & Purnendu Pritam
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