The Assembly elections due this month have apparently developed a strained relationship within the major stakeholders of the four-month-old coalition of Opposition parties under the banner of the INDIA alliance after the breakdown of Congress-Samajwadi Party seat-sharing talks in one of the poll-bound States, Madhya Pradesh.

While the Congress has been unhappy with the Samajwadi Party (SP) for assuming a dominant role in seat-sharing talks in Uttar Pradesh, the SP led by Akhilesh Yadav is accusing the Congress of doing the same in the Madhya Pradesh State elections, which has 230 Assembly seats. Interestingly, another major stakeholder in the INDIA bloc, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), has also proceeded to announce its candidates in the poll-bound States of MP, Chhattisgarh, and now Mizoram.

Sources within the Congress, the SP, and the AAP have stated that the apparent breakdown in alliance talks could have an impact on the INDIA alliance’s plans in Uttar Pradesh for the 2024 Lok Sabha polls, for which the coalition has been formed to challenge the dominance of the BJP.

While the Congress has moved forward with announcing its candidates in crucial Madhya Pradesh, where it emerged as the winner in the last polls in 2018, the SP has also declared nine candidates in the State. Sources suggest that it may ultimately field about 40 candidates. The SP had only won one seat in MP in the 2018 Assembly elections.

Sources have indicated that the SP is also considering fielding candidates in Chhattisgarh, a move that may further strain its ties with the Congress. In Uttar Pradesh, the SP is reluctant to allocate more than 2-3 Lok Sabha seats to the Congress. Uttar Pradesh holds significant importance in the Lok Sabha elections, contributing the highest number of 80 MPs. The BJP has secured substantial victories in the state in both the 2014 and 2019 general elections.

Akhilesh Yadav, addressing a related query, stated, “Congress should clarify whether the INDIA alliance operates at the national or State level. If it is not at the State level, it will not be so in the future for other States as well. I continuously come across misleading media reports about a seat-sharing agreement for UP in 2024. I want to affirm that the SP is formulating a strategy to contest all 80 seats in UP with the utmost responsibility, aiming to defeat the BJP.”

On his part, senior Congress leader and former Madhya Pradesh chief minister Kamal Nath said the INDIA alliance operates at the central level, but discussions are ongoing with the SP. He emphasised that both parties should work together to defeat the BJP.

In contrast, UP Congress chief Ajay Rai expressed the view that Yadav should refrain from contesting in Madhya Pradesh, as the Congress holds a strong position there. He reiterated that his party is prepared to contest all 80 seats in UP.

Akhilesh, the former UP CM, remarked that SP leaders would not have engaged with Congress on seat sharing if they had known that there would be no INDIA alliance at the state level.