Last updated:
Many party insiders cited the Congress’s decision as a result of its rejection of an initial proposal to contest five assembly seats, while some cited it as part of a wider seat-sharing arrangement, which also includes the upcoming Maharashtra assembly elections.
Samajwadi Party leader Akhilesh Yadav, however, said that in Maharashtra, he hopes his party can contest 12 seats (Image: X/@samajwadiparty)
A few hours after Samajwadi Party leader Akhilesh Yadav announced that according to the latest strategy, a joint candidate of the INDIA opposition bloc will contest in all nine assembly seats under the SP cycle symbol, the Congress has declared that it will not contest the Elections to be held on November 13 in Uttar Pradesh. Many party insiders termed the Congress’s decision as a result of rejecting an initial proposal to contest five assembly seats, while some called it part of a wider seat-sharing arrangement, which also includes the upcoming Maharashtra elections on November 20.
“Congress will not nominate candidates in the upcoming assembly elections in UP. We will work hard to ensure the victory of all candidates of INDIA bloc and Samajwadi Party. This necessary decision is taken in the interest of the people to save the constitution and values of this country and defeat the BJP ,” said Avinash Pandey, National General Secretary (in-charge), Uttar Pradesh Congress.
The Congress statement came hours after the Samajwadi Party announced that its bloc partner INDIA will contest the polls on the SP symbol. “It’s not about seats but about winning’. In this strategy, the joint INDIA Alliance candidate will contest in all 9 seats in the Samajwadi Party’s ‘cycle’ election symbol,” read former UP chief minister Akhilesh Yadav’s post on social media site X.
The post further stated that Congress and Samajwadi Party are united and stand together for a big victory. INDIA is going to write a new chapter from the victory in this minor election, he said. “The strength of the Samajwadi Party has increased with the support of the top leadership of the Congress party and the booth level workers. With this unprecedented cooperation and support, every worker of the India Alliance in all the 9 assembly seats has been filled with new energy with determination to win,” the post said. mentioned.
Ahead of the Congress’s official statement, which was released on Thursday, there were rumors that the party might not contest the polls on any of the seats in UP.
“The decision is part of the new seat-sharing formula where the Congress is giving the Samajwadi Party (SP) a free hand in UP, while in Maharashtra, it is expected that the SP will field candidates in fewer seats, so that the Congress can compete for the maximum number of seats in the polls. the upcoming state assembly,” a senior Congress leader said.
On October 9, a day after the Congress suffered an unexpected defeat in the Haryana assembly elections, the party got another shock from its bloc partner INDIA SP who announced candidates for seven of the 10 poll-bound UP assembly seats, including the incumbent. reviewed by Congress. Uttar Pradesh Congress representative Avinash Pandey also expressed his displeasure, saying, “This is a unilateral announcement, and we did not ask about it.”
SP has announced candidates for Karhal, Katehari, Kundarki, Phulpur, Sisamu, Majhawan, and Meerapur. The much-talked-about party names include Akhilesh Yadav’s brother Tej Pratap Yadav, who was ousted from Karhal, while the Congress was offered two seats in Khair and Ghaziabad Sadar against its demand for five seats.
The Congress, which won six parliamentary seats in Uttar Pradesh in the April-June Lok Sabha elections, has demanded that the SP provide five vacant assembly seats previously won by the BJP in 2022. A senior Congress leader said the party was particularly interested. in Majhawan, Ghaziabad, Khair, Meerapur, and Phulpur. However, the SP has announced its candidates for Majhawan, Meerapur, and Phulpur, complicating seat-sharing negotiations.
Samajwadi Party leader Akhilesh Yadav, however, said that in Maharashtra, he hoped the party would contest 12 seats, decided by the state president. UP Congress chief Ajai Rai told News18 that he will continue to support SP as he has been following the “gathbandhan dharm” (ethics of alliance).
Bypolls were initially scheduled for ten seats in UP. However, the Election Commission of India announced elections for only nine seats – Karhal, Sisamau, Kundarki, Ghaziabad, Phulpur, Majhawan, Katehari, Khair, and Meerapur – excluding Milkipur. Voting is set for November 13, with counting on November 23. SP has so far announced candidates for seven seats, including Milkipur.
