On Wednesday, the Samajwadi Party revealed its decision to jointly contest the upcoming Lok Sabha elections with the Congress.
In an effort to consolidate non-Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) votes, Samajwadi Party leader Ravidas Mehrotra stated to ANI, “We have tried to stop the scattering of non-Bharatiya Janata Party votes. We will try to secure all 80 seats in Uttar Pradesh.”
Mehrotra outlined the distribution of seats, mentioning that the Samajwadi Party would vie for 63 of Uttar Pradesh’s 80 Lok Sabha seats, while the Congress would field candidates on the remaining 17.
Both the Indian National Congress (INC) and the Samajwadi Party are members of the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA bloc), a coalition comprising 28 Opposition parties united against the Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance in the forthcoming general elections.
The announcement followed Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav’s indication that the seat-sharing discussions with the Congress were nearing finalization. Yadav reassured, “There is no conflict, and everything will be clear in front of you very soon. All is well that ends well,” signaling a positive resolution to the negotiations.