Seat-sharing negotiations between the Congress and the Samajwadi Party (SP) for the 2027 Uttar Pradesh assembly elections are set to begin on November 17, Congress’s Uttar Pradesh in-charge Rajendra Pal Gautam announced on Saturday, giving a timeline to the much-anticipated negotiations within the INDIA bloc.
This was the Congress’s first response after SP national president Akhilesh Yadav said at the Hindustan Times Leadership Summit (HTLS) in New Delhi that the Congress had sought 181 seats for the 403-member UP assembly.
Gautam was addressing a press conference along with UP Congress president Aradhna Mishra in Lucknow.
Speculation over the seat-sharing formula has been continuing for nearly two months, with both parties yet to formally spell out their respective positions.
Asked about the number of seats the Congress would seek, Gautam said the final figure would emerge after detailed discussions between the two sides.
“The exact number will become clear very soon. The two parties will discuss each seat they wish to contest. Discussions will be held on every aspect of each constituency that both the Congress and the SP want to contest,” he said.
Gautam has maintained that the Congress is seeking an equal and honourable share in the alliance. He had said in the first week of October that the party had submitted a list of between 150 and 200 constituencies to the SP.
{{/usCountry}}Gautam has maintained that the Congress is seeking an equal and honourable share in the alliance. He had said in the first week of October that the party had submitted a list of between 150 and 200 constituencies to the SP.
{{/usCountry}}Akhilesh Yadav’s disclosure that the Congress had put forward a demand for 181 seats has now provided a specific figure to the ongoing discussions, although the final number will depend on negotiations between the two parties.
The November 17 meeting is expected to set the stage for constituency-wise discussions, with both alliance partners required to reconcile their respective claims before arriving at a seat-sharing arrangement for the 2027 elections.
Addressing the media, Aradhana Mishra said every Congress worker will now act as ‘guardians of votes’ (vote rakshak). “Congress district presidents have been instructed to inspect the voter list in their respective districts,” she said.
“In the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, the BJP had raised the slogan of ‘crossing 400 seats’ and planned to change the Constitution. But people of the country do not want the Constitution to be changed. In the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, the Dalit community voted against the BJP,” Mishra said.