Congress Seeks 181 Seats in Uttar Pradesh Election Pact

Samajwadi Party (SP) president Akhilesh Yadav revealed that the Indian National Congress has requested to contest 181 of the 403 seats in the 2027 Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections. Speaking at the Hindustan Times Leadership Summit in Delhi, Yadav described the relationship between the two parties as very good and asserted that the INDIA bloc would remain united to defeat the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party.

While Yadav maintained a positive tone, other SP leaders expressed significant disagreement. SP Parliamentarian Shivpal Singh Patel termed the demand for 181 seats unreasonable, arguing that Congress deserves fewer than 100 seats—potentially as few as 50 to 65. Patel cited the disparity in legislative strength, noting that Congress currently holds only two MLAs compared to the SP's 111, and warned that over-allocating seats would demoralize grassroots workers.

Yadav dismissed the possibility of an alliance with the Bahujan Samaj Party while remaining in the INDIA bloc. He also pledged to make alleged theft of donations at the Ram temple in Ayodhya, along with unemployment and paper leaks, central campaign issues. Senior leaders from the SP and Congress are scheduled to meet on November 17 to begin formal negotiations on a final seat-sharing formula based on candidate winnability.