New Delhi: Preparations for the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections are in full swing, with all political parties pulling out all the stops. A fierce contest is expected between the NDA and the INDIA alliance in the UP elections. While UP CM Yogi Adityanath is highlighting his Hindutva image and development initiatives, the Samajwadi Party (SP) is cornering the government on issues such as law and order and unemployment.
The lack of a finalised seat-sharing formula within the INDIA alliance remains a cause for concern. Negotiations regarding seat-sharing between the alliance’s major partners in UP, the SP and the Congress, are currently deadlocked. According to sources, the Congress is demanding the 100 seats where it secured victories in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
However, high-level deliberations between the two parties are cu. rrently underway. It is expected that a seat-sharing formula between the Congress and the SP for UP will emerge soon. Sources indicate that the Congress is staking a claim to more than 100 seats.
Which Lok Sabha seats did the Congress win?
A seat-sharing formula between the Congress and the SP has not yet been finalised. The Congress won six seats in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. The winning candidates were Imran Masood (Saharanpur), Rakesh Rathore (Sitapur), Rahul Gandhi (Raebareli), Kishori Lal Sharma (Amethi), Tanuj Punia (Barabanki), and Ujjwal Raman Singh (Allahabad). These six districts encompass a total of 30 assembly constituencies.
Meanwhile, senior SP leaders state that several factors will be considered during seat allocation. Key criteria include a candidate’s local influence, performance in past elections, caste dynamics, organisational strength, and the ability to challenge opposition parties. A senior SP leader mentioned that there is talk of allocating around 40 to 50 seats to the Congress; however, the final figure will be determined only after further discussions between the two parties.
The old formula won’t work.
Meanwhile, senior Congress leaders point out that the party contested more than 100 seats during the 2017 alliance and argue that it should receive a similar number of seats this time as well. However, the Samajwadi Party leadership favours allocating seats based on current electoral realities rather than sticking to the old formula.
In 2022, both parties contested the elections separately; the SP won 11 seats, while the Congress secured only two. Given this backdrop, current political strength and the standing of potential candidates are being considered crucial factors for seat-sharing arrangements for the 2027 elections.
