By Pradeep Kapoor
Seat-sharing has emerged as one of the biggest unresolved issues between the Samajwadi Party and Congress ahead of the 2027 Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections.
Although Samajwadi Party national president and former chief minister Akhilesh Yadav made it clear during his PDA rath yatra to Rae Bareli on September 24 that his party will contest in alliance with Congress to defeat BJP, hopes of an alliance are still alive, despite multiple bones of contention.
The disagreement is not simply about numbers; it also concerns which constituencies each party will contest.
Congress is seeking a much larger share than what the SP is comfortable with. Congress leaders have recently spoken of contesting at least 150 seats, while earlier reports put its negotiating demand in the 105 -135 seat range.
AICC general secretary and in-charge of UP Rajendra Pal Gautam has always maintained that his party wants a respectable number of seats and is not willing to be dubbed as junior partner. He is asking for 105 seats from Samajwadi Party. UPCC president Ajay Rai is also supporting the claims made by Rajendra Pal Gautam.
SP’s reported calculations are much lower. Recent reports suggest SP has been considering earmarking roughly 60–80 seats for Congress, although there is no final formula yet.
2017 state poll arithmetic are influencing Congress’s current demand. Congress is looking back to the 2017 SP-Congress arrangement, when Congress contested in 105 seats.
SP is preparing to contest across all 403 constituencies. Reports say SP has been working on candidates in a large number of seats, which gives it leverage in negotiations, but also signals that it does not want to surrender constituencies prematurely.
Individual constituencies may be harder than the overall number. Rae Bareli and Amethi, for example, have been reported as points of disagreement.
The two parties are approaching the alliance from different perspectives. Congress wants enough seats to rebuild its organisation and political presence in UP, while SP wants to retain the larger share of constituencies reflecting its stronger statewide electoral organisation and recent position in UP politics.
Congress has also been conducting its own assessment of all 403 seats to identify constituencies where it believes it can compete.
There is also a timing problem: Congress has pushed for an early agreement, whereas SP has been more willing to delay the final settlement while strengthening its bargaining position.
So, at present, the important question is not whether both parties say they want an alliance—they have both indicated that they do—but whether they can agree on a mutually acceptable number and a constituency-by-constituency formula.
Reports indicate senior-level discussions may become more important in October.
Apna Dal faction led by Pallavi Patel is working on 40 Kurmi-dominated seats for 2027 assembly polls. After breaking off alliance with Samajwadi Party in the wake of the Rajya Sabha polls in 2024, Patel is now open for alliance on her terms. (IPA Service)
