LUCKNOW: In a major departure from its earlier stand of continuing alliance with Congress and carving put a bigger truck among opposition parties to take on BJP in 2019 Lok Sabha elections, Samajwadi
Party huddled to carve out a separate path for itself besides analysing the reasons for its decimation in 2017 UP Assembly elections. SP tally dwindled to 47 from 224 in 2017 UP polls which the party fought in alliance with Congress.
The intentions of Samajwadis to go it alone in 2019 became clear on Monday after the Congress failed to turn up for the crucial meeting called by SP on Saturday over allegedly faulty EVMs. It was Akhilesh’s bid to unify the opposition especially with an eye on upcoming by-elections in Gorakhpur and Phulpur Lok Sabha seats vacated by CM Yogi Adityanath and Dy CM Keshav Maurya. Akhilesh’s efforts received a blow as both Congress and BSP remained conspicuous by their absence.
The issue of alliance with the Congress was raised during party's Monday meeting attended by over 400 SP delegates including MLAs and candidates who lost in 2017. Even the leaders of those constituencies on which Congress had fielded its candidates under the seat-sharing formula in 2017 attended Monday meeting presided by SP chief Akhilesh Yadav.
SP chief spokesperson, Rajendra Chaudhary confirmed that the party will review Congress performance on 105 seats which were given to it during 2017 assembly elections. “The assembly seats which were
given to Congress will now be assembly segments of various Lok Sabha seats from where SP would like to field its candidates. Those seats need to be reviewed and a decision taken accordingly,” Chaudhary claimed.
Though he chose to be non-committal on SP leaders’ opinion to strengthen party cadre rather than relying on a possible alliance with other political parties.
However, Congress leader Dwijendra Tripathi too hinted at parting ways with the SP in upcoming 2019 LS polls. “The Congress has already decided not to ally with any party including SP. If SP says it is analyzing performance on various seats, so is Congress,” he claimed. Congress sources said that the party is
also preparing for the by polls for two Lok Sabha seats as well. “We have to ensure our survival on our own,” said another senior Congress leader.
SP's stance to review his party's alliance with the Congress ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, political experts said, was an indication enough that the very idea of grand alliance had a few
receivers.
Meanwhile, BSP chief Mayawati had never been easy with the idea of alliance among opposition parties. She had made it clear right at the onset that any alliance was possible only after the seat sharing
formula was finalised among the parties.