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As the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections loom, the Samajwadi Party (SP) and the Congress seem to be engaged in a high-stakes game of brinkmanship ahead of seat-sharing talks. Despite both parties claiming their alliance is solid, their actions have irritated each other.

For the Congress, which holds only two MLAs but secured six Lok Sabha seats in the 2024 elections, the negotiations are crucial for rebuilding its presence in a state it once dominated. Meanwhile, the SP, the larger Opposition force with 37 Lok Sabha seats, must decide how much ground to cede to its junior partner while preserving the coalition that yielded its best performance in UP in years.

Both parties insist that the public disagreements should not be mistaken for actual negotiations. SP Rajya Sabha MP Javed Ali told The Indian Express, "The alliance and seat sharing is going to be decided by the top leadership. They have not said anything. Only when they say something will there be a reason to raise questions about the alliance."

The Congress has escalated the pressure. On September 21, Saharanpur MP Imran Masood urged Akhilesh Yadav, the SP chief, to finalize the alliance quickly. On October 2, Masood was appointed the Uttar Pradesh Congress’s working president, a move that has drawn attention within the SP, particularly because the Congress seeks several Muslim-dominated constituencies that the SP views as part of its core political space.

Congress spokesperson Anshu Awasthi stated that the criticism of statements is due to personal ambitions and that the alliance is indispensable for both parties. He added, "Every party wants to have a respectful and equal space in an alliance. But these things will be discussed when they come to the table."

However, the jockeying has extended beyond public statements. On October 3, Swami Prasad Maurya, a former SP member and leader of the recently formed Apni Janata Party, announced his alliance with the INDIA bloc after meeting Congress leader Rahul Gandhi. Maurya's move signals that more parties may join the fray, adding to the complexity of the negotiations.