Prateek Yadav-Aparna Yadav: Story of school sweat hearts, to political opponents, to alleged messy divorce

The death of Prateek Yadav, younger brother of Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav and husband of BJP MLA Aparna Yadav, has shocked everyone.

Updated: May 13, 2026 10:29 AM IST

Prateek Yadav, the younger son of Samajwadi Party founder Mulayam Singh Yadav and a stepbrother of Akhilesh Yadav, died in Lucknow on Wednesday under suspicious circumstances.

Prateek, 38, suddenly fell ill and was rushed to the civil hospital in the early hours of the day, but was declared dead at the hospital, the sources said. Although hailing from a prominent political family, Prateek, a fitness enthusiast, had stayed away from active politics.

Prateek-Aparna’s love story

Prateek Yadav and Aparna became friends during their school days. They met at a friend’s house and shared their email addresses. Prateek expressed his love to Aparna over email. They were engaged in 2011. In December of that year, they married in Saifai, Mulayam Singh Yadav’s ancestral village. Superstars like Amitabh Bachchan attended the wedding as guests. Prateek and Aparna have two daughters – elder daughter, Prathama Yadav, was born on March 20, 2014 and younger daughter is Pratiksha Yadav.

ALSO READ: Was Prateek Yadav, step brother of Akhilesh Yadav, suffering from depression? His body had injury marks, suggest reports

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Tension in paradise

Aparna Bisht Yadav, joined the BJP and is currently the vice chairperson of the State Women Commission. Aparna Yadav joined the BJP just before the 2022 UP Assembly elections. Following which tensions brewed between the couple. Aparna Yadav made headlines by praising the BJP. In 2014, she praised PM Narendra Modi for the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan. In 2017, Aparna Yadav said that Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath’s government was doing good work in the state. After this, she joined the BJP in 2022. She was also seen praising the BJP for the consecration of the Ram Temple.

Who is Aparna

• Aparna is the daughter of journalist Arvind Singh Bisht and Lucknow Municipal Corporation officer Ambi Bisht.
• Aparna was born on February 5, 1990. Her father was appointed Information Commissioner during the Samajwadi Party government.
• Aparna Yadav studied at Loreto Convent Intermediate College. She became friends with Prateek Yadav during their school days.
• After completing her schooling, Aparna Yadav completed her Master’s degree from the University of Manchester, UK.
• Aparna has obtained a Master’s degree in International Relations and Politics from there.