Samajwadi Party (SP) leader and MP Shiv Pal Singh Patel on Saturday, 3 October 2026, sharply pushed back against Congress' reported demand for 150 seats in the upcoming 2027 Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections, saying the party deserves no more than 10 to 20 seats based on its current electoral strength in the state. The remarks signal early friction within the INDIA bloc alliance even before formal seat-sharing talks have commenced in Lucknow.

What SP's Shiv Pal Singh Patel Said

Speaking to reporters, Patel was unambiguous in his assessment of Congress' bargaining position. 'I think if they are given 50 seats, they should look at their actual position and status before seeking anything more than 50 seats. They should look at their past record,' he said. He also cited the Madhya Pradesh example, arguing that 'the six seats we got in Madhya Pradesh were because of the Samajwadi Party.'

Patel went further, suggesting that even 50 seats would be generous. 'In reality, they deserve only 10 to 20 seats,' he said, adding that Congress holds just two MLAs in the 403-seat Uttar Pradesh Assembly. He warned that if both parties fielded candidates on the same seats, it would lead to vote-splitting and losses for the alliance.

Congress Holds Its Ground

Congress MP Imran Masood, the newly appointed Working President of the Uttar Pradesh Congress Committee (UPCC), declined to engage with Patel's remarks directly but reaffirmed his party's official position. 'Whatever our in-charge is saying, we stand by that. That is the party's official line,' Masood said.

The Congress' state in-charge, Rajendra Pal Gautam, had earlier stated that the party would not settle for fewer than 150 seats in any alliance arrangement with the SP for the 2027 polls — a demand that sits far above what SP appears willing to concede.

The Stakes: Why UP Seat-Sharing Matters

Uttar Pradesh is the most consequential battleground in Indian electoral politics. The state sends 80 members to the Lok Sabha — the highest of any state — making any alliance calculus here a direct factor in national power equations. The SP has been out of power in the state since 2017, while Congress has not formed the state government since 1989. Both parties have strong reasons to maximise their respective seat counts.

Notably, the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) tally in Uttar Pradesh fell sharply to 33 Lok Sabha seats in 2024, down from 62 in 2019, with the SP emerging as the state's single-largest party in the general election. That swing has emboldened both alliance partners — but also raised the competitive stakes between them over seat allocation.

The BSP Factor and Alliance History

The seat-sharing arithmetic is further complicated by the position of the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), led by Mayawati, which has traditionally maintained distance from both the SP and Congress, though it briefly allied with the SP for the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. The BSP has since seen a decline in electoral representation while retaining a core Dalit support base.

In the 2022 Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections, the SP, Congress, and BSP contested separately. Congress had historically pushed for a three-way coalition, but that effort collapsed. The current SP-Congress partnership is framed within the broader INDIA bloc, of which both are constituents at the national level.

What Comes Next

Patel acknowledged that the final call rests with SP's national president. 'The main decision has to be taken by our National President, honourable Akhilesh Yadav. We are just ordinary soldiers of the party,' he said, indicating that his remarks reflect the party's internal sentiment rather than a final negotiating position. Formal seat-sharing discussions between the SP and Congress are expected to begin later this month. How far apart the two parties are — with Congress demanding 150 seats and SP willing to offer fewer than 50 — suggests negotiations could be prolonged and contentious.