The 36-year-old agriculture engineer from Mysore University, who was sent to Australia for further studies, is aware that his father, Mulayam Singh Yadav, has given him the responsibility at a crucial time when the SP has suffered a loss of 12 seats in the Lok Sabha elections from UP — from 35 in 2004 to 23 this time.

The rise of young Rahul Gandhi on the political scene explains the unprecedented performance of the Congress party. His efforts resulted in a huge surge for the Congress which won 21 seats in UP compared to a measly nine in the 2004 Lok Sabha elections. This victory of the Congress has forced Mulayam to pass on the responsibility of infusing vigour in the SP to Akhilesh Yadav.

Akhilesh has proved his hold on the voters by winning from two constituencies-Kannauj and Firozabad. Besides Mulayam, Akhilesh was the most sought after campaigner who was given a helicopter to address more than three rallies every day during the campaigning.

As in-charge of youth frontal organizations of the party, Akhilesh has already toured the entire state and is aware of the problems facing the party.

His foremost challenge would be to build the organisation at the grass-root level and bring young blood to the party to fight both the BSP and the Congress.

Young Yadav also has the daunting task of bringing the Muslims back into the party fold. Muslims, who remained with Samajwadi Party since 1990 when Mulayam as the Chief Minister ordered firing on the karsewaks to protect the Babri mosque in Ayodhya, deserted the party in the 2009 elections.

It must have come as a real shock to Mulayam, once known as Maulana Mulayam, that his party failed to ensure the victory of even a single Muslim fighting on the SP ticket though he had given tickets to over a dozen candidates..

Ever since former BJP chief minister Kalyan Singh left his party and joined hands with Mulayam, the Muslims lost confidence in Samajwadi Party as they perceived Kalyan Singh as the person responsible for the demolition of the Babri mosque.

Akhilesh Yadav has to maintain the balance by involving Kalyan Singh's son Rajbir Singh to consolidate the Lodh backward votes. At the same time, he has to win back the Muslim votes. It remains to be seen whether the coming together of the threesome — Akhilesh, Rajbir and Rashid Masood's son, Sadab Masood - can woo back the backward and Muslim voters.

The last few months saw a massive exodus from the Samajwadi Party. Several MLAs, MPs and other important leaders quit the party to join hands with BSP and Congress. The exodus, witnessed during the elections, gave the impression that Samajwadi Party could not be trusted to ensure success in the elections.

Political observers feel that the Samajwadi Party ignored the common people whose cause used to be taken up by the party leaders in the past. Akhilesh Yadav will have to evolve a new strategy that would ensure constant touch with the common man on the one hand and exposure of the misdeeds of the Mayawati government on the other.

The loss in seats for Mayawati also makes it clear that the people have seen through her game and were fed up with the caste and communal politics. This also poses a challenge for Akhilesh, who will have to look beyond caste and communal politics and form a new agenda based on development and the uplift of the common man. Time alone can tell how he will counter a young and determined Rahul. (IPA)