Around this time five years ago, when Akhilesh Yadav overcame an acrimonious family feud and seized the reins of the Samajwadi Party (SP) as well as its symbol, ‘cycle’, from his father Mulayam Singh, a flashy blue Lamborghini made heads turn in Lucknow. The luxury car served as a tool for the BJP to underscore the apparent disparity between the SP’s claims of espousing grassroots socialism and the lavish lifestyle of members of the ruling Yadav family.
Prateek Yadav, Mr. Akhilesh’s step-brother, owned the car, which had then become the subject of a 125-second video clip released by the BJP, themed, ‘Paanch crore ki Lamborghini par sawaar Samajwaad’ (’Socialism on a ₹5 crore Lamborghini’). Not directly involved in politics, Mr. Prateek is a real estate entrepreneur and a body-building enthusiast, who runs a high-end gym in Lucknow, which was in 2015 inaugurated by Mr. Mulayam, himself a wrestler in his youth. On January 19, Mr. Prateek’s wife, Aparna Bisht Yadav, joined the BJP.
