U.P. Assembly byelections: SP says seat sharing fixed with Congress; not aware, says Ajay Rai

U.P. Assembly byelections: Samajwadi Party and Congress agree on seat distribution for Uttar Pradesh bypolls, BJP requests date change due to festival

A Samajwadi Party (SP) spokesperson on Thursday (October 17, 2024) said its INDIA bloc ally Congress has agreed to contest two of the 10 seats where bypolls are due in Uttar Pradesh, giving the rest to the principal Opposition party, but State Congress chief Ajay Rai claimed “we are not aware of this”.

“Our agreement is final with the Congress. Of the 10 seats, the Congress will contest on two Khair (Aligarh) and Ghaziabad, while on the rest eight, the SP will contest,” said SP spokesperson Rajendra Chowdhury.

The SP has already declared candidates for seven seats including Meerapur from where it has fielded Sumbhul Rana. Mr. Rai, however, said, “As of now, we stand by our demand of five seats.”

Bypolls are set to be held to 10 Assembly seats – Katehari (Ambedkar Nagar), Karhal (Mainpuri), Milkipur (Ayodhya), Meerapur (Muzaffarnagar), Ghaziabad, Majhawan (Mirzapur), Sisamau (Kanpur city), Khair (Aligarh), Phulpur (Prayagraj) and Kundarki (Moradabad).

Nine of these seats fell vacant after its MLAs were elected as MPs in the Lok Sabha polls, while bypolls are being held in the Sisamau seat due to the disqualification of SP MLA Irfan Solanki, who was convicted in a criminal case.

Except Milkipur, the Election Commission has announced polls on the rest nine seats. The polling for seats will be held on November 13.

The ruling BJP and ally Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) on Thursday asked the Election Commission to defer the bypoll dates from November 13 to November 20 in view of Kartik Purnima bath and puja on November 15.