Why Akhilesh Yadav needs to revisit his strategy, ensure stronger SP

New Delhi: 

As the 18th Lok Sabha’s first session ends, the Samajwadi Party needs to revisit its expansion strategy in the wake of recent success in general elections. 

The Akhilesh Yadav-led political outfit, which has emerged as the biggest regional force after the Lok Sabha polls, needs to take stock of its future.

Last month, SP chief resigned as a Member of the Legislative Assembly from Uttar Pradesh's Karhal assembly seat after deciding to continue as the Member of Parliament for the Kannauj Lok Sabha constituency.

However, soon after the inaugural session of the newly constituted House, many in the Samajwadi Party now believe that the strategy to hold onto the Lok Sabha seat may turn out to be a flawed one.

Sources in the party stated that after a strong show in general elections, Yadav’s complete focus should have been on ensuring a win for the Samajwadi Party in  the 2027 Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls.  

“Akhilesh should have continued with the public contact programs and built up the morale of the leaders, party cadre and organisation by staying in the state. Moving to New Delhi for repeated Lok Sabha sessions will prove to be a distraction as his political clout lies in Uttar Pradesh, where he needs to grow the party ahead of the next Assembly polls. Unless the Samajwadi Party secures power in the state, it cannot dream of dislodging the Bharatiya Janata Party from the Centre as well as the state,” sources said.

There is a feeling within the party that the leadership of Akhilesh Yadav is needed more at the state level, rather than at the Centre. 

“In fact, if this recent good performance in Lok Sabha polls is built upon properly, the Samajwadi Party could really aim for its best ever performance in 2029 Lok Sabha polls. Moreover, any further decline of the BJP ahead of general elections polls would ensure that the saffron outfit is out of contention at the Centre. However, that would entirely depend on the dislodging of the Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath-led government from Uttar Pradesh,” sources stated.

Time to end BJP’s supremacy in UP?

After a disastrous performance in the recent Lok Sabha polls, the BJP is desperate to hold on to Uttar Pradesh which had elected the maximum number of Lok Sabha MPs for the saffron unit in 2014 and 2019. 

The party’s hopes for a consolidated Hindu vote bank were dashed in 2024 by by opposition's smart caste and religion-based consolidation.

With 80 Lok Sabha seats, Uttar Pradesh has been the biggest contributor to the BJP’s electoral cause. The state electorate had wholeheartedly backed the duo of Modi and Yogi over the past decade, in two successive Lok Sabha and State Assembly polls.

In 2024, however, Yadav emerged as the strongest player and trumped the saffron duo, stopping the BJP at its worst-ever performance in the past decade.

In the post-poll scenario, it must be noted that factionalism has come to the fore in the BJP camp.

Several leaders, including former Cabinet ministers like Smriti Irani, alleged sabotage after their loss, which NewsDrum had exclusively reported.

There have also been reports of unease and discomfort in the party’s relationship with its ideological parent, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh.

The saffron unit seems to be in disarray and at its weakest possible situation in Uttar Pradesh, in over a decade.

With Lok Sabha polls still five years away, Akhilesh Yadav would do himself and his party a favour by concentrating on preparing for a crucial battle with the BJP in 2027.

The opportunity is presenting itself before Akhilesh to concentrate on state politics and ensure SP’s return to power in the crucial state of Uttar Pradesh instead of focusing on Central politics.