Ramdas Athawale demands 25 seats for RPI(A) in 2027 UP elections, warns BJP against going solo

Lucknow:

Union Minister Ramdas Athawale said on Saturday that the Republican Party of India (Athawale), which is a part of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), will contest on at least 25 seats in next year's assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh. However, he warned that his party may go solo if the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) disagrees and fails to allocate seats to it in the alliance. 

The RPI(A) is primarily a party that is based in Maharashtra and works for the Dalit community. During the 2024 assembly elections in Maharashtra, it contested on 31 seats, but had failed to open its account. Similarly, the party had also failed to win even a single seat in 2024 Lok Sabha elections. 

"In Uttar Pradesh, the party will contest 25 seats as an ally of the BJP. If this demand is not met, the party will contest the assembly elections alone," Athawale, who is a Rajya Sabha member, said at a press conference in Lucknow.

The RPI(A) president, who is the Minister of State for Social Justice and Empowerment at the Centre, also lauded Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, saying 'goondaraj' has ended in Uttar Pradesh under his leadership. However, he said he has demanded Adityanath to provide at least five acres of land to families of the Dalit community in villages and construct community centres.

"This will resolve the issue of migration to cities, and people will be pulled out of poverty. The Dalit community demands that the state government construct 'Samaj Bhavans' (community centres) in villages. We will meet Yogi Adityanath today and urge him to take RPI together," the union minister said. 

Assembly elections are scheduled to be held in Uttar Pradesh next year, and the BJP under Adityanath would be seeking a third straight term. In the previous elections in 2022, the BJP won 255 seats. The Apna Dal (Sonelal) and the NISHAD Party - NDA members - won 12 and six seats, respectively.

Former Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav-led Samajwadi Party also improved its tally, winning 111 seats. Mayawati's Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) won just one seat, while the Congress bagged two constituencies. The Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) won eight seats and the Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party (SBSP) won six seats. 

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