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Tensions within the Opposition alliance have come to the fore ahead of the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections, with pressure politics and negotiations intensifying between the Samajwadi Party (SP) and Congress over seat sharing.

SP chief Akhilesh Yadav and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi are reportedly working together to find a seat-sharing formula in Uttar Pradesh. However, the two parties have yet to reach an agreement, with recent statements from their leaders highlighting differences over the issue.

Both the Congress and SP have maintained that they want to defeat the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the upcoming election. However, their inability to reach a consensus on seat sharing has become increasingly evident.

SP Leader Sends Message To Congress

SP MP Sanatan Pandey issued a clear message to the Congress on seat allocation.

“Wherever seats are concerned, they will be given seats. The Samajwadi Party and Congress have to form the government, and a government can only be formed when we have seats,” Pandey said.

He added that the Congress should contest seats with the aim of winning them rather than simply increasing its tally.

“We want them to take seats and contest them, provided they take the seats to win, not just to count them,” Pandey said.

His remarks came after Congress MP Imran Masood spoke about the need for adequate representation for the party within the alliance.

Imran Masood Calls For Greater Share

Masood had said that if the two parties were to move forward together, their share and participation would have to be taken into account.

“We want the BJP to lose in Uttar Pradesh. We also want our party to survive in Uttar Pradesh, and that is our fundamental right. So, we want our party to survive and also want to defeat the BJP,” Masood said.

He also urged the alliance partners to finalise the arrangement quickly and begin preparations for the election.

“Whatever has to be done should be done immediately so that we can enter the field soon. The BJP should not get ahead of us,” he said.

SP Hits Back At Congress

Responding to Masood's remarks, SP MP Ramashankar Rajbhar questioned the Congress' electoral strength, citing its performance in Bihar.

“The strength of the Congress party has been seen in Bihar. They take seats, but after the results, they do not even review why they won five when they contested 50,” Rajbhar said.

He stressed that the objective should be winning seats rather than simply securing a larger number of seats to contest.

The statements from leaders of both parties indicate growing differences over seat sharing ahead of the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections. Unless the SP and Congress agree on a formula soon, the dispute could affect their electoral prospects.