Cong working on 2027 roadmap, to decide on SP alliance at right time

: The Congress is working on a roadmap to strengthen the party in all the 403 assembly constituencies of the state and gear up the organisation for the 2027 Uttar Pradesh assembly elections.

The move comes amid signals that the party is open to contesting the polls in alliance with the Samajwadi Party, the main partner of the INDIA bloc in Uttar Pradesh.

The SP and the Congress had contested the 2024 Lok Sabha polls in Uttar Pradesh together, winning 43 seats – 37 went to the SP and six to the Congress-- and reducing the BJP’s tally to 33 seats in the state.

Senior Congress leaders assembled here for a meeting of the state party’s political affairs committee to work out a roadmap to the 2027 UP assembly elections and decided to set timelines to strengthen the party up to the booth level.

“We are gearing up the party for the 2027 U.P. assembly elections. The party organisation will be strengthened in all the 403 U.P. assembly constituencies,” All India Congress Committee general secretary (incharge U.P.) Avinash Pandey said after the Uttar Pradesh Congress Committee’s political affairs committee meeting that was also attended by the newly appointed district and city unit presidents.

Asked about contesting the 2027 U.P. polls in alliance with the Samajwadi Party, Pandey said, “We will take a call on the issue at an appropriate time.”

Uttar Pradesh Congress Committee president Ajay Rai echoed the same sentiments.

With moves to strengthen the organisational base on all 403 seats, the Congress wants to be in a better bargaining position for seats if the alliance with the SP is worked out.

Meanwhile, the party has decided to take up the Ahmedabad resolution to follow the “Nyaya Path” and hold a state level Samvidhan Bachao (Save the Constitution) rally at Basti on April 28. It has also decided to hold demonstrations at the district BJP offices across the state on April 25 to protest against the BJP government’s alleged misuse of the official machinery against party leaders in the National Herald case.

“We have worked out timelines to complete the Sangthan Srajan and strengthen the party organisation up to the booth level by August 15. We will also hold a Samvidhan Bachao rally at Basti and hold statewide demonstrations at all the district BJP offices in the state. We will resort to Gandhian ways to hold our protests,” Pandey said.

Pandey also said the Congress would set up the state executive committee soon. The party would soon appoint 132 coordinators in the district and city party units to oversee the implementation of Sangthan Srajan programme in the districts, he added.