Congress to go solo in UP polls, contest all 403 seats, says Priyanka Gandhi

The Congress will not enter into an alliance with any political party and contest all the 403 seats in the 2022 Uttar Pradesh polls on its own, party leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra announced on Sunday.

A tweet from the Uttar Pradesh unit of the Congress said Priyanka Gandhi made the declaration on the plea of the party workers.

Ruling out an electoral tie-up in Uttar Pradesh, the Congress general secretary said the leaders of the Samajwadi Party (SP) and the Bahujan Samaj Party (SP) were nowhere to be seen even when the 2017 Unnao rape case and the Hathras gangrape-and-murder case in 2020 rocked the country, adding that only the Congress was fighting for the people.

According to sources in the Congress, she said the party fought for the people's agenda over the last five years in the state and added that on the basis of its organisational strength, it would go to the polls and give an opportunity to the party cadre.

Addressing Congress workers at the Pratigya Sammelan - Lakshya 2022 in Bulandshahr's Anoopshahr, Priyanka Gandhi stressed on the importance of the Uttar Pradesh polls for the party, calling it a "do-or-die" situation.

She held talks with around 7,400 party workers from 14 districts of the state in Bulandshahr.

Priyanka Gandhi's declaration of the Congress going solo in the Uttar Pradesh polls assumes significance as in recent days, the grand old party was seen favourably inclined towards the Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) of Jayant Chaudhary.

Emphasising that the electoral contest can only be won by strengthening the party at the booth level, Priyanka Gandhi called upon the Congress workers to bolster the booth committees.

She asked the party cadre to be active on social media and post all party activities on various social networking platforms.

Taking a jibe at the ruling BJP, she said the saffron party has no respect for the freedom movement as its leaders did not shed blood and sweat for the country's independence, and added that only leaders such as Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel and BR Ambedkar envisioned freedom for the country.

The Congress general secretary said her party had not only brought development in the country, but also promoted brotherhood and harmony.

Hitting out at the Centre over the rising fuel prices, she said for 70 years, the Congress ensured that the fuel prices did not shoot up above Rs 70 per litre. However, in the last seven years, the BJP government has let the guard down, which has allowed the prices to shoot upwards of Rs 100 per litre, she added.

Faced with the challenge to revive the party's electoral fortunes in the political heartland, where it could win only seven seats in the 2017 Assembly polls, Priyanka Gandhi has been crisscrossing the state.

The Uttar Pradesh polls are due early next year.