The Samajwadi Party (SP) has announced the names of two additional candidates for the upcoming Madhya Pradesh assembly elections, bringing the total count of their candidates to six.When questioned about a potential alliance with the Congress for the MP polls as part of the opposition Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (I.N.D.I.A.), SP State President Ramayan Singh Patel ruled out the possibility.“The decision about the alliance in any state is taken by the partys national leadership, but as of now we dont see any possibility of such an alliance in Madhya Pradesh for the upcoming assembly polls. But, our national president will take a decision in this regard,” he said, as per a report by the news agency PTI.The I.N.D.I.A. opposition bloc comprises 26 political parties, including the Congress and the SP. In a show of unity, Congress on Saturday extended support to the Samajwadi Party candidate Sudhakar Singh for the Ghosi assembly seat by-poll on September 5 in Uttar Pradeshs Mau district.Uttar Pradesh | As allies in the INDIA Opposition, Congress extends support to the Samajwadi Party (SP) in the upcoming Assembly by-poll on September 5 from the Ghosi constituency. pic.twitter.com/N8FO2HbNDD— ANI UP/Uttarakhand (@ANINewsUP) August 26, 2023In Madhya Pradesh, the main political contest has traditionally been between the Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), with a limited presence of other parties.After BJP & BSP, Samajwadi Party announces candidates for Madhya Pradesh pollsThe SP is the third party to announce candidates, following the BJPs release of a list of 39 candidates and the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) announcing seven nominees. Despite the Election Commission not yet releasing the assembly polls schedule, the SP, led by former UP chief minister Akhilesh Yadav, has taken an early step in declaring candidates.Earlier in August, the SP unveiled a list of four candidates from seats in the Bundelkhand and Gwalior-Chambal regions, situated near the Uttar Pradesh border. The party has now revealed candidates for two additional seats in the Vindhya region, naming Vishwanath Singh Gaud Markam for Dhauhani and Shravan Kumar Singh Gaud for Chitrangi, both from the Sidhi district near the UP border.Patel revealed that the SP has announced candidates for six seats thus far. The party leaderships directive to the state unit is to contest in all constituencies. He mentioned that the party will continue announcing candidates as suitable individuals are identified and preparations for the upcoming polls are ongoing.Regarding the agenda for the MP polls, Patel said that the partys leadership has already called for a caste-based census. The SP aims to highlight issues such as unemployment allowance exceeding ₹3,000 per month for youth, government-backed business loan guarantees for youth, and loan waivers for farmers.VIDEO | “Those who want the rights, respect and similar social standing, as prescribed in the Constitution given by BR Ambedkar, also want caste-based census, says Samajwadi Party chief @yadavakhilesh, demanding caste-based survey in the Uttar Pradesh. pic.twitter.com/yWvcj0WP1X— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) August 11, 2023In the 2018 elections, the SP secured one seat in the 230-member MP assembly. Amidst the political landscape, the Congress managed to win 114 seats, the BJP secured 109 seats, and the Congress formed a coalition government under Kamal Nath with the support of SP, BSP, and independent candidates. However, the coalition later faced challenges leading to the BJPs return to power in March 2020 under Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan.
