Pooja Pal, a recently expelled Samajwadi Party (SP) MLA from Uttar Pradesh, has voiced serious concerns about her safety, alleging death threats and holding party president Akhilesh Yadav responsible if she is harmed. Pal, who represented the Chayal assembly constituency in Kaushambi, was expelled from the SP on August 14, 2025, for what the party termed "anti-party activities and indiscipline". The expulsion followed her praise of Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath's policies regarding law and order.

In a letter addressed to Akhilesh Yadav, Pal expressed her fear for her life, drawing a parallel to the murder of her husband, former Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) MLA Raju Pal, who was killed in 2005. She claimed that instead of supporting her family after her husband's murder, the SP shielded the accused. Pal stated she is now receiving threats and fears she could meet the same fate as her husband. "If I am murdered, the real culprit will be Akhilesh Yadav," she wrote.

Pal's expulsion came after she praised Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly for his government's actions against gangster Atiq Ahmad. During a session, she thanked Adityanath for "ensuring justice" in her husband's murder case, which was linked to Atiq Ahmad. She specifically credited Adityanath's zero-tolerance policy for leading to the elimination of criminals like Atiq Ahmed. "The Chief Minister buried my husband's murderer, Atiq Ahmed," she stated.

The Samajwadi Party accused Pal of "serious indiscipline" and acting against the party's interests, despite repeated warnings. A letter from the party, signed by Akhilesh Yadav, stated that her actions had caused "considerable damage to the party". Deputy Chief Minister Brajesh Pathak criticized the expulsion, calling it the Samajwadi Party's "anti-women approach" and faulting the party for punishing Pal for "supporting the vision of developed India".

Pal also accused the Samajwadi Party of favoring certain communities and ignoring the interests of backward castes, extremely backward castes, and Dalits. "In SP, backwards, extremely backwards and Dalits are treated as second-class citizens. Only Muslims are considered first-class, even if they are hardened criminals," she alleged. She claimed she had believed Akhilesh Yadav would fight against criminals and deliver justice, but her experience in the party led her to believe otherwise.

This is not the first time an expelled SP MLA has alleged death threats. In 2016, Rampal Yadav, another expelled MLA, claimed he received death threats from people in the state government after his security was withdrawn. He also alleged that his illegal properties were demolished as an act of personal vendetta.