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Uttar Pradesh: Verbal volleys signal apparent unease in Samajwadi Party-Congress ties?
There has also been apparent unease between the Congress and the Samajwadi Party over handling of the Sambhal violence issue and the changed seating arrangement in the Lok Sabha
Despite Congress and Samajwadi Party leaders asserting that “all is well” with their alliance, an ongoing exchange of verbal volleys by both sides is signalling apparent unease on the political horizon in Uttar Pradesh.
The developments indicate that the alliance may face a bumpy road ahead and leaders of both the parties are likely to have the challenge of jointly and smoothly steering the way to the 2027 U.P. assembly elections.
Differences over seat-sharing in the November by-elections to nine UP assembly seats ultimately led to the grand old party not fielding its candidates.
There has also been apparent unease between the Congress and the Samajwadi Party over handling of the Sambhal violence issue, the changed seating arrangement in the Lok Sabha pushing the Samajwadi Party from the eighth to the sixth block and leaving only one seat for the party in the front row.
The Samajwadi Party’s support to Trinamool Congress leader and West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee for INDIA bloc stewardship and the SP Maharashtra unit’s threat to quit the MVA (Maha Vikas Aghadi) alliance are some other issues that indicate apparent discord. All this comes when the Congress is yet to recover from defeats in the Haryana and Maharashtra assembly polls. In the coming months, the party may need to walk a tight rope as it makes forays into the vote banks on which the Samajwadi Party has been banking in Uttar Pradesh.
“The Samajwadi Party has its own priorities. The SP had urged the Lok Sabha speaker for a discussion on the Sambhal violence. The Congress, however, gave priority to holding a demonstration over the Adani controversy. The Samajwadi Party has good relations with the TMC and respects the TMC leadership as well. We have the same respect for the Congress. So, this does not mean that the SP is opposed to the Congress,” said Samajwadi Party leader Udaivir Singh.
Most senior Congress leaders refrain from making any comments on the stance of SP leaders and assert that there are no differences between the Congress and the Samajwadi Party over continuation of the alliance.
“Some of the SP leaders are indulging in unnecessary statements. This is wrong,” said Congress MP Imran Masood. Uttar Pradesh Congress Committee president Ajay Rai said there were no differences. “We can sit and talk like a family if there is anything to be discussed,” Rai said.
Amid reports that the SP was upset with the Congress over the seating arrangement in the Lok Sabha, the SP chief Akhilesh Yadav, said: “I am not upset. But those dealing with the seating arrangement should understand that the BJP will try to instigate a fight within the INDIA bloc. The BJP does not want unity in the INDIA bloc. This is not a big issue, and we can resolve it.”
