PDA is Yadav’s formulation for an alliance of Pichhde, or backward classes, Dalits and Alpsankhyak, or minorities.
Congress leaders, meanwhile, reaffirmed their commitment to the alliance. The party’s Uttar Pradesh in-charge, Rajendra Pal Gautam, said its partnership with the SP rested on a shared commitment to social justice, democracy and the Constitution.
Writing on X, Gautam said attempts by the BJP to spread confusion or engineer divisions would fail. “The INDIA bloc is united, and it will remain united,” he said.
Uttar Pradesh Congress chief Aradhana Misra Mona also criticised those behind the poster campaign. In a Hindi post on X, she said such tactics reflected anxiety over the opposition’s strength and described the alliance as a shared struggle to defend constitutional and democratic principles.
The Congress formally opened seat-sharing discussions with the SP earlier this week, submitting a list of more than 175 constituencies where it believes it could perform effectively as an alliance partner.
Gautam had told PTI that the proposal covered between 175 and 200 seats, with detailed discussions between the parties expected to follow. His remarks indicated that the initial list was open to negotiation for the state’s 403 assembly constituencies.
The Congress’ expectations face questions over its prolonged electoral decline in Uttar Pradesh, where it last held power in 1989. Contesting independently in 2022, it won only two assembly seats, down from seven in 2017.
Its performance in the 2024 Lok Sabha election, however, has encouraged party leaders. Fighting alongside the SP, the Congress secured six seats, with its ally winning 37 and the BJP finishing with 33. Congress leaders see that result as a basis for rebuilding the party’s presence ahead of the assembly contest.
With PTI inputs
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