Although two INDIA bloc allies in Uttar Pradesh—Samajwadi Party and Congress—are yet to finalize seat-sharing pact for bypolls to 10 assembly seats in the state, the Congress is busy holding “Samvidhan Bachao Sankalp Sammelan” (save Constitution conferences) on all these seats.
So far, the party has held these conferences in Phulpur (Prayagraj) and Majhwan (Mirzapur). The next conference will be held in Meerapur (Muzaffarnagar) on October 7, Khair (Aligarh) on October 8, in Sishamau (Kanpur) on October 9, in Karhal (Mainpuri) on October 14.
Likewise these conferences will be held in Kundarki (Moradabad) on October 15, in Milkipur (Ayodhya) on October 16, in Katehari (Ambedkar Nagar) on October 17 and in Ghaziabad on October 19.
Senior party leaders, including UP Congress chief Ajay Rai, All India Congress Committee general secretary (UP in-charge) Avinash Pande and Congress MLA Aradhana Mishra ‘Mona’, will be present in these events aimed at garnering ground level support.
Speaking about the conferences, UPCC chief Ajay Rai said, “Our aim is to save the Indian Constitution from the BJP which is adamant about taking away the reservation from the backward and the downtrodden.”
“The BJP is working for (its) big industrialist friends. Its leaders openly said during the 2024 Lok Sabha polls that they want to change the Constitution. Our leader Rahul Gandhi has embarked on a mission to save the Constitution and we are taking the message forward to the people of the nation,” he claimed.
On the other hand, the Samajwadi Party is also working on the ground in these seats. Both the SP and the Congress have evinced interest in contesting bypolls in Uttar Pradesh.
The Congress has given a proposal to contest five seats. However, SP sources indicate that they might give the Congress two to three seats.
SP chief Akhilesh Yadav has also said his main aim is winnability and number of seats doesn’t matter much when the parties in alliance have a common aim to defeat the BJP.
Nine of these seats fell vacant after their MLAs were elected as MPs in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls, bypolls are being held on the Sishamau seat due to the disqualification of SP MLA Irfan Solanki who was convicted in a criminal case.
