- Formal seat-sharing discussions expected October for 2027 elections.
The Samajwadi Party and Congress have run into an early point of disagreement over seat-sharing for the 2027 Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections, with SP MP Shiv Pal Singh Patel publicly pushing back against the Congress’ demand for at least 150 constituencies. Patel, the SP’s Lok Sabha MP from Pratapgarh, said seat allocation should reflect a party’s electoral performance and organisational strength. At the same time, he maintained that the alliance between the two parties should continue.
The comments come ahead of formal seat-sharing discussions, which are expected to take place in October. Congress Uttar Pradesh in-charge Rajendra Pal Gautam has said his party will not contest fewer than 150 of the state’s 403 Assembly seats under an alliance arrangement.
SP Pushes Back On Demand
Patel questioned the basis of the Congress’ 150-seat demand and argued that the party’s share should be linked to its electoral standing in Uttar Pradesh. “150 seats is out of the question. Even giving them 50 seats would be a big deal,” Patel said in an interaction with Aaj Tak.
Despite opposing the Congress’ proposed number, Patel said the SP-Congress alliance should remain in place as the two parties prepare for the next Assembly election.
The disagreement has emerged before the two sides have formally settled their seat-sharing formula, making the allocation of constituencies an early issue for the Opposition alliance in the state.
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Patel Makes Rae Bareli Claim
Patel also made a claim concerning Rahul Gandhi’s decision to contest the Rae Bareli Lok Sabha seat in the 2024 general election.
“Rahul Gandhi was afraid to contest from Rae Bareli. When he went to [SP supremo] Akhilesh Yadav to explain his position and speak to him, Akhilesh told him that if he did not contest, he would field his own candidate. Only then did he fill the nomination,” Patel claimed.
The statement is Patel’s account of events and has not been independently established in the material available for this report.
Rahul Gandhi eventually contested Rae Bareli in the 2024 Lok Sabha election and won the seat. The constituency has traditionally been associated with the Congress and was previously represented by Sonia Gandhi.
Congress Sets 150-Seat Floor
The SP MP’s comments follow Rajendra Pal Gautam’s statement last week that Congress would not accept fewer than 150 seats as part of an alliance for the 2027 Assembly polls. “Seat-sharing will likely be finalised in October. Congress has candidates available to contest all 403 seats. Under the alliance, the Congress is entitled to 50% of the seats. We will not contest fewer than 150 seats,” Gautam told ANI.
Congress has said it is preparing across all 403 constituencies even while negotiations with alliance partners are pending. The party’s stated position is that it should contest at least 150 seats under the alliance arrangement.
2022 Results In Focus
Patel’s argument also drew attention to the Congress’ record in the 2022 Uttar Pradesh Assembly election.
Congress contested all 403 seats in that election but won only two. The party’s performance is now being cited by the SP MP while questioning the scale of the Congress’ current demand.
The Congress and SP subsequently fought the 2024 Lok Sabha election in Uttar Pradesh together. The alliance won 43 of the state’s 80 parliamentary constituencies, with the SP securing 37 and Congress winning six, according to the results cited in current reports.
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2017 Alliance Had Mixed Result
The two parties had also joined hands for the 2017 Uttar Pradesh Assembly election. That alliance, however, did not prevent the SP from losing power in the state.
The SP won 47 Assembly seats while Congress secured seven. The BJP emerged as the largest party and formed the government.
The contrasting results from the 2017 Assembly election and the 2024 Lok Sabha polls are now part of the wider backdrop to negotiations over the 2027 Assembly contest.
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: abplive.com
