In a significant development, the Congress has decided not to field candidates in the upcoming Uttar Pradesh bypolls and has announced its support for Akhilesh Yadav’s Samajwadi Party (SP).
Congress’ Uttar Pradesh chief Ajay Rai and AICC general secretary Avinash Pande said party workers and leaders would unconditionally work to ensure the victory of Samajwadi Party candidates or that of other INDIA bloc parties.
The Congress’ assertion came a day after Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav said all INDIA bloc candidates would contest the bypolls in Uttar Pradesh on its ‘cycle’ election symbol. Pande, however, clarified that the candidate and symbol both would be of the Samajwadi Party or any other INDIA bloc ally, and not of the Congress.
Earlier on Wednesday Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav announced that all I.N.D.I.A. bloc candidates would contest all nine seats in the upcoming by-polls on his party’s election symbol ‘cycle’.
In a post on X, he stated that the Congress and Samajwadi Party are united and standing shoulder to shoulder for a big victory. He also said that the India Alliance is going to write a new chapter of victory in this by-election. Under this strategy, the joint candidates of ‘India Alliance’ will contest on all the 9 seats on the Samajwadi Party’s election symbol ‘cycle’, he added.
Yadav earlier said the alliance’s decision was not informed by any seat-sharing maths but a pursuit of victory. “Congress and Samajwadi Party are united and stand shoulder to shoulder for a big victory. India bloc is going to write a new chapter of victory in this by-election,” Yadav said in a post on X.
The Congress had originally demanded five of 10 assembly seats (including Milkipur). The SP, however, last week said the Congress had agreed to contest on two seats, Ghaziabad and Khair (Aligarh), leaving the rest to the SP.