INDIA bloc leaders will meet in Delhi on September 30, with Akhilesh Yadav skipping the strategy session.
The SP has cited Rajya Sabha election work, while seat-sharing differences with Congress remain unresolved.
Congress wants the alliance formula settled in October, but Akhilesh is seeking to delay formal negotiations.
Leaders of parties in the INDIA bloc will meet in Delhi on September 30 for what is expected to be a key strategy session, even as Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav has decided to stay away amid growing strain with the Congress over seat-sharing. As per India Today, a party leader will attend on the SP’s behalf.
The meeting comes after the deletion of names of more than 13 crore people in the SIR and turmoil within the Election Commission. Leaders from Mamata Banerjee to Uddhav Thackeray are expected to shape a joint line against Gyanesh Kumar and the central government, with major decisions likely at the meeting.
Akhilesh’s absence has added a second political layer to the gathering. While the SP has linked his decision to Rajya Sabha election work, the move matters because any meeting involving Akhilesh, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and Rahul Gandhi would likely bring the unresolved seat-sharing dispute to the front.
Seat-Sharing Pressure Grows
The Congress is worried about the signal. Akhilesh has said he will be busy with Rajya Sabha election-related meetings, including discussions on candidate selection, at the time of the Delhi gathering.
Party insiders, however, told that he also wants to avoid a face-to-face meeting with the Congress top leadership. If Akhilesh, Kharge and Rahul are seen together, the focus would quickly shift to the SP-Congress tussle over seat-sharing, reported India Today.
That dispute has been building for some time. The Congress has been pressing the SP to quickly settle both the total number of seats and the constituencies each party will contest, because it believes any further delay will hurt its position. Akhilesh, by contrast, is not in a hurry to close a deal and is trying to stay away from those talks for now.
Kharge Contact Talks
Akhilesh has opened one channel. He has disclosed that he has spoken to Kharge, indicating that the Congress is now pushing the SP at the top leadership level as well to settle seat-sharing.
The timing matters. There is speculation that Akhilesh could meet Kharge in the first week of October, but India Today reported that he remains highly cautious about engaging the Congress on alliance terms at this stage.
His approach appears clear. Akhilesh wants to delay formal talks on the alliance and seat-sharing for as long as possible because once structured negotiations begin, the Congress could intensify pressure and narrow his room for manoeuvre.
Alliance Terms Battle
Pressure is building from more than one side. The Congress continues to press the SP on seat-sharing and Imran Masood has also been pushing the party hard on the issue.
Akhilesh addressed the strain directly at a press conference. "just as the BJP appears to be fighting from the outside but is united internally with its allies, something similar is happening between the SP and the Congress they may appear to be saying different things publicly, but internally, the two parties are together," Akhilesh Yadav said.
The SP’s position is that the Congress should first identify its winnable candidates and the seats where it has a strong organisational presence and can fight on its own. Only after that does the SP want broader seat-sharing talks.
The Congress sees danger in delay. It believes that if the issue drags on for another month or two, it may lose the chance to negotiate an alliance with another party, leaving Akhilesh free to dictate terms and reducing Congress leverage.
That is why the Congress wants the alliance formula, including the number of seats, settled in October regardless of the circumstances. Akhilesh wants an alliance on his terms and the Congress wants one on its own terms, making an early resolution unlikely.
