SP hurt itself with Cong alliance: Amit Shah

After months of bargaining, Samajwadi Party and Congress sealed a pre-poll pact to contest the Uttar Pradesh assembly elections, ending days of suspense.

The two parties have come together in order to thwart BJP's attempt to storm back to power after a 15-year gap.

SP will have the larger share of 298 of 403 seats, while Congress will contest the remaining 105 seats.

The Samajwadi Party-Congress alliance was said to be materialized after Congress President Sonia Gandhi intervened.

One of the reasons for the delay in the announcement of the alliance was reportedly Uttar Pradesh CM Akhilesh Yadav's unhappiness over Congress sending "light-weight emissaries" like the election strategist Prashant Kishor for talks.

However, later, senior Congress leaders got involved and salvaged the deal.

According to UP political analysts, the alliance will help SP and Congress consolidate the minority vote against other parties and throw a massive challenge to BJP.

Finding an ally in SP gives hope for Congress, which had lost its stronghold in UP.

Alliance with a national party would make SP a serious contender for power.

The deal might be a bad news for BJP.

Akhilesh Yadav and Rahul Gandhi addressed a joint press conference, saying they were "friends and not just political allies" and that both parties "share much of each other's ideologies."

They said the aim of their campaign was "to defeat the politics of anger and divisiveness" of the BJP.

Akhilesh said the two parties would win 300 of the 403 seats in the UP Assembly.

Hardening his stance against the SP-Congress alliance, SP supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav asked party workers to contest from all 403 seats in the state, saying "The alliance does not serve the interests of the SP."

He said the alliance would "harm the long term prospects of the SP."

He also said it would give the Congress a chance to win back minority-voter confidence.

The Samajwadi Party and the Congress are continuing their tussle over seat-sharing for the UP elections.

While a joint road show by Rahul Gandhi and Akhilesh Yadav is scheduled to begin, candidates from both parties filed contesting nominations in several places including Lucknow, Rae Bareli and Amethi.

However, it is unclear as to how both parties would resolve the issue at the moment.

UP CM Akhilesh Yadav and Congress VP Rahul Gandhi released the Samajwadi Party-Congress alliance's 'Common Minimum Programme' (CMP) for UP.

The CMP contains a list of 10 promises including "smart phones, skill development, free cycles and homes for the poor".

The duo also promised affordable power to farmers, 33 percent place for women in government offices.

BJP chief Amit Shah said Samajwadi Party had hurt itself by offering 103 seats to the Congress, which has no presence in Uttar Pradesh.

He said BJP, the "strongest contender", has different "chief rivals" in each constituency.

Shah rejected allegations of copying from the SP manifesto and polarizing voters on communal lines. He was also confident of winning in Uttarakhand, but non-committal about Punjab.