The Aryavarth Express
Agency ( Uttar Pradesh): A pivotal phone conversation between Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and Samajwadi Party President Akhilesh Yadav has reportedly been instrumental in breaking the deadlock over seat-sharing for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls in Uttar Pradesh. This discussion led to giving the alliance between the Congress and the Samajwadi Party its final shape.
Sources indicate that the alliance was almost finalized, with the only contention being the Shrawasti seat, which Congress is vying for. The Congress is expected to contest between 16 to 18 seats in Uttar Pradesh in the upcoming elections. Initially, the Congress was purportedly offered seats with low winnability, leading to a request for alternative constituencies. Following the conversation between Gandhi and Yadav, the Congress secured constituencies like Sitapur and Barabanki, among others, thereby getting a “fair deal” in the alliance.
The Congress is also likely to contest from Kanpur, Varanasi, Saharanpur, Amroha, Fatehpur Sikri, and Jhansi, among others. In the Moradabad division, the Congress agreed to contest from Amroha alone, despite initially asking for two seats.
Akhilesh Yadav confirmed that an alliance with Congress is in the works in Uttar Pradesh. His participation in Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra was contingent on the acceptance of the Samajwadi Party’s seat-sharing proposal for the polls. Yadav did not join the yatra in Raebareli on Tuesday but is anticipated to participate in Agra following the announcement of the seat-sharing deal.
The Samajwadi Party had previously stated that it offered 17 Lok Sabha seats in Uttar Pradesh to the Congress. Both parties are part of the INDIA bloc, an alliance of opposition parties formed to challenge the BJP in the upcoming general elections. This strategic collaboration between the Congress and the Samajwadi Party underscores the evolving political alliances in Uttar Pradesh, highlighting efforts by opposition parties to consolidate their position against the ruling BJP in the forthcoming polls.