LUCKNOW, June 30 -- Kamal Akhtar, the Samajwadi Party's chief whip in the UP Legislative Assembly, resigned from his post on Tuesday. Akhtar, an MLA from Kanth assembly constituency in Moradabad, stepped down due to reported differences with the party's Moradabad MP Ruchi Veera, insiders say.

However, speaking to the media after tendering his resignation, Akhtar denied any differences with the SP MP and said, "Ruchi Veera is our party's MP. I have no differences with her. Our national president directed me to step down, so I resigned. When the party assigns me some other responsibility, I will shoulder it."

Akhtar became the SP's chief whip in July 2024 after party MLA Manoj Pandey resigned from the post for siding with the BJP in the R...