SP-BSP to formalise alliance for 2019 polls today

New Delhi, Jan 12: The Samajwadi Party and the Bahujan Samaj Party are likely to announce to formalise the alliance for the 2019 Lok Sabha elections today. BSP supremo, Mayawati and chief of the SP, Akhilesh Yadav are set to address a joint press conference today, following which the alliance will be formalised.

It may be recalled that the two chiefs had in principle given their approval to the alliance, minus the Congress in Uttar Pradesh. Both leaders are likely to announce the alliance at the press conference on Saturday.

The parties are likely to contest 37 seats each. However no candidates would fielded at Rae Bareli and Amethi, the bastions of Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi.

Recently Akilesh's uncle Ram Gopal Yadav had confirmed that the Congress would not be part of the alliance.

The alliance could be problematic for the BJP which had won 73 out of the 80 seats in Uttar Pradesh in 2014. The setback for the BJP was seen when this alliance came together to fight the by-elections in Gorakhpur, Phulpur and Kairana last year.

In the Kairana Lok Sabha by-elections in May last year, the BJP lost to the joint opposition candidate, RLD's Tabassum Hasan.

The seat had fallen vacant following the death of the BJP candidate Mriganka Singh's father Hukum Singh. Tabassum Hasan was supported by the Congress, the SP and the BSP.

In March, the BJP lost the Lok Sabha bypolls in Gorakhpur and Phulpur. In the last parliamentary elections in 2014, the BJP won 71 seats, securing 42.63 per cent of the votes. BJP ally Apna Dal bagged two seats.

Samajwadi Party won five seats with a vote share of 22.35 per cent. The BSP did not win any seat while securing 19.77 per cent votes.