The Congress is preparing to demand at least 125 seats from the Samajwadi Party (SP) for the 2027 Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections, with party general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra expected to lead negotiations with SP president Akhilesh Yadav.
The move comes as the two INDIA bloc allies prepare to formalise their electoral understanding in India's most populous state, where differences over seat allocation have emerged as a major challenge ahead of the polls.
According to party sources cited in media reports, Priyanka Gandhi held a three-hour meeting with senior Uttar Pradesh Congress leaders on Monday to review potential constituencies and prepare the party's demands for negotiations.
Around 175 Assembly seats were discussed during the meeting, with the Congress preparing to present a shortlist of approximately 125 to 150 constituencies to the SP leadership.
The party reportedly hopes to finalise the seat-sharing arrangement by November, allowing both allies sufficient time to prepare for the elections.
๐๐ผ๐ป๐ด๐ฟ๐ฒ๐๐ ๐ฑ๐ฟ๐ฎ๐๐ ๐๐ฝ ๐๐ฒ๐ฎ๐ ๐น๐ถ๐๐
As part of its preparations, the Congress has divided potential constituencies into three categories based on electoral performance, organisational strength and prospects of securing victories.
The preliminary assessment includes around 100 Category A seats, 40 to 50 Category B seats and 25 to 35 Category C seats.
Another meeting between Priyanka Gandhi and state Congress leaders is expected later this week, following which the party may formally communicate its demands to the Samajwadi Party.
Congress leaders are using electoral data from the 2024 Lok Sabha elections and the 2017 Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls to identify constituencies where the party believes it has a competitive presence.
The party is also seeking to contest at least one Assembly constituency within each of Uttar Pradesh's 80 Lok Sabha seats.
๐๐ผ๐ธ ๐ฆ๐ฎ๐ฏ๐ต๐ฎ ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐๐๐น๐๐ ๐๐ต๐ฎ๐ฝ๐ฒ ๐๐๐ฟ๐ฎ๐๐ฒ๐ด๐
The Congress is drawing confidence from its performance in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, when it contested 17 seats in alliance with the Samajwadi Party and won six.
According to the party's assessment, it secured leads in 38 Assembly segments and finished second in another 42 during the parliamentary elections.
All 80 constituencies have reportedly been included in its preliminary list of seats for the 2027 Assembly elections.
The Congress is also examining constituencies associated with prominent party leaders, including Ajay Rai, Ajay Kumar Lallu, Supriya Shrinate and Nadeem Javed.
Among the seats it intends to seek are constituencies in Amethi, Raebareli and Saharanpur, including some currently represented by Samajwadi Party legislators.
Reports suggest that the Congress may also stake claims to around a dozen Assembly constituencies won by the SP in previous elections, potentially complicating negotiations between the allies.
๐ฆ๐ฃ ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐น๐๐ฐ๐๐ฎ๐ป๐ ๐๐ผ ๐ฐ๐ผ๐ป๐ฐ๐ฒ๐ฑ๐ฒ ๐บ๐ผ๐ฟ๐ฒ ๐๐ฒ๐ฎ๐๐
While both parties have indicated their willingness to continue their alliance, their expectations over seat-sharing remain considerably different.
The Samajwadi Party is reportedly reluctant to offer more than 60 to 65 constituencies to the Congress, significantly below the latter's proposed demand.
Akhilesh Yadav has repeatedly emphasised that the ability to win individual constituencies should determine seat allocation.
The SP is also understood to be preparing candidates for several constituencies as it considers contesting approximately 350 of Uttar Pradesh's 403 Assembly seats.
Congress state in-charge Rajendra Pal Gautam, meanwhile, has maintained that the party deserves at least 150 constituencies under the alliance arrangement.
The competing demands underline the difficulty of accommodating both parties' political ambitions while maintaining a united electoral front.
๐๐บ๐ฒ๐๐ต๐ถ, ๐ฅ๐ฎ๐ฒ๐ฏ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐น๐ถ ๐ฝ๐ผ๐๐ฒ ๐ฐ๐ต๐ฎ๐น๐น๐ฒ๐ป๐ด๐ฒ
The Congress's claims over Assembly constituencies in Amethi and Raebareli could emerge as a particular point of disagreement.
Although the two parliamentary constituencies have longstanding associations with the Gandhi family, the Congress failed to win any of their 10 Assembly segments in the 2022 elections.
In Amethi's five Assembly constituencies, the BJP won three, the Samajwadi Party secured one and a BJP-supported Independent candidate won another.
In Raebareli, the SP won four Assembly seats, while the BJP secured the remaining constituency.
The Congress's weak Assembly performance in these areas could complicate its negotiations with the SP, particularly where sitting legislators are seeking renomination.
๐ฃ๐ฟ๐ถ๐๐ฎ๐ป๐ธ๐ฎ ๐๐ผ ๐ฝ๐น๐ฎ๐ ๐ธ๐ฒ๐ ๐ฟ๐ผ๐น๐ฒ
Priyanka Gandhi's involvement in the negotiations is being viewed as a significant organisational move by the Congress.
She led the party's campaign in the 2022 Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections, when it contested independently but secured only two seats.
The Congress has since undertaken organisational changes in the state, appointing three-term MLA Aradhana Misra as its state unit president and Saharanpur MP Imran Masood as working president.
Misra, who replaced Ajay Rai, is considered to have a working relationship with Akhilesh Yadav, while Masood's appointment is seen as part of the party's efforts to strengthen its outreach among Muslim voters.
With both parties preparing their constituency assessments, the coming negotiations will determine whether they can agree on a seat-sharing formula before the 2027 elections.
The central challenge remains reconciling the Congress's demand for a larger electoral presence with the Samajwadi Party's preference for retaining most of the constituencies it intends to contest.