NEW DELHI: The Congress is eyeing 125 seats as part of an alliance with the Samajwadi Party for the upcoming Assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh.
With an objective of initiating negotiations with the SP, Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi on Monday held a three-hour-long meeting with UP Congress leaders regarding seat allocation. Approximately 175 seats were discussed in the meeting.
The Congress has prepared a list comprising roughly 100 ‘Category A’ seats, 40-50 ‘Category B’ seats, and 25-35 ‘Category C’ seats.
Another meeting between Priyanka Gandhi and UP Congress leaders is scheduled for this week, following which the Congress may present a list of about 125 to 150 seats to the Samajwadi Party.
The objective, party insiders said, is to finalise the seat-sharing arrangement by November.
Party insiders said Priyanka Gandhi will play a pivotal role in the seat-sharing negotiations with SP chief Akhilesh Yadav. She had also led the party’s unsuccessful campaign in the 2022 polls when the Congress fought the elections alone and could manage to win only two seats.
This time the Congress is formulating its list based on data from the 2024 Lok Sabha elections and the 2017 Assembly elections. The party’s aim is to contest at least one Assembly seat within every Lok Sabha constituency.
In the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, which it fought in alliance with the SP, the party saw a surprising upswing in its fortunes, winning six of 17 seats it contested. The Congress led in 38 Assembly segments and stood second in 42 others in the 2024 polls. All these 80 seats have been included in the party’s wishlist.
Additionally, the list features seats associated with prominent party leaders such as Ajay Rai, Ajay Lallu, Supriya Shrinate, and Nadeem Javed.
The Congress also intends to stake a claim to seats in Amethi, Raebareli, and Saharanpur that are currently held by Samajwadi Party MLAs. The party is also eyeing about a dozen seats that were won by the Samajwadi Party.
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