Akhilesh sacks party panelists

 In an unexpected development, Samajwadi Party President Akhilesh Yadav has sacked its panel of leaders who act as its spokespersons on television channels.

In a statement issued here on Friday, party spokesperson Rajendra Chaudhary said: "The appointment of all party panelists has been cancelled on the directives of national President Akhilesh Yadav."

He further asked the TV channels not to invite any of the panelists for debates.

Apparently, the decision comes after the failure of the SP panelists to defend the poor performance of the SP-BSP alliance in the Lok Sabha elections in Uttar Pradesh. IANS