SP, BSP And Congress Come up With Seat Sharing Formula to Counter BJP in 2019 Lok Sabha Elections

By adopting the seat sharing formula, the opposition parties hope to repeat the outcome of Lok Sabha by-elections in Kairana, Gorakhpur and Phulpur.

New Delhi, June 13: The opposition parties in Uttar Pradesh – in their bid to take on the BJP in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections – are likely to have finalised a seat sharing formula, says a Zee News report.

The report cited sources saying that of the 80 Lok Sabha seats in the state, Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) and Samajwadi Party (SP) will contest on 30 seats each, whereas the Congress is expected to field its candidates on 10 seats. The remaining 10 seats are likely to be distributed among smaller parties like the Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD).

By adopting the seat sharing formula, the opposition parties hope to repeat the outcome of the recently-concluded Lok Sabha bypolls in Kairana where the RLD candidate Tabassum Hasan – backed by BSP, SP and Congress – defeated BJP candidate Mriganka candidate.

The BJP had faced defeat in Gorakhpur and Phulpur Lok Sabha bypolls in a similar manner.

Meanwhile, there have been reports of differences between the non-NDA parties ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. However, SP chief Akhilesh Yadav, in his recent statement, said that he was ready to sacrifice a few seats to continue his alliance with the BSP.

He stated that to ensure defeat of BJP in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections in 2019, his party is ready for any sacrifice. “Even if we have to sacrifice 2-4 seats after entering into an alliance with the BSP, we will not back out.”

Recently, BJP President Amit Shah had also acknowledged that the SP-BSP alliance will pose a challenge for the saffron party in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. He had, however, exuded confidence of defeating the Congress either in Amethi or Rae Bareli.

Leaders of 13 anti-BJP parties had held hands on the stage during the oath-taking ceremony of Karnataka Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy. The ‘power show’ by the opposition parties was a clear message that the BJP could face a united opposition front in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.