Daijiworld Media Network - Lucknow
Lucknow, Nov 12: All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) president Asaduddin Owaisi and Azad Samaj Party (Kanshiram) chief Chandrashekhar Azad on Thursday announced an alliance for the 2027 Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections, unveiling a new political formation called the 'Samajik Parivartan Morcha' (SPM).
The announcement was made at a press conference in Lucknow in the presence of Owaisi and Azad. Owaisi also declared Chandrashekhar Azad as the alliance's chief ministerial candidate for the 2027 Assembly elections.
Describing the alliance as a broad-based political initiative, Owaisi said the Morcha was open to other parties, including the Samajwadi Party (SP) and the Congress, if they were willing to join hands to prevent the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) from returning to power in Uttar Pradesh.
"On behalf of our party, I would like to state that we are committed to making this Samajik Parivartan Morcha a success. It gives me great pleasure to announce that our brother, Chandrashekhar Azad, will be the chief ministerial candidate," Owaisi said.
He expressed confidence that the alliance would work together to bring about political and social changes in the state, adding that Azad's elevation as chief minister would help implement their shared vision.
Rejecting the description of the alliance as a 'third front', Azad said the Samajik Parivartan Morcha would represent deprived, oppressed and marginalised communities and could emerge as a powerful political platform.
"People have been calling it a third front, but it is not a third front. It is the Samajik Parivartan Morcha. If you understand its depth, you will realise that it is the first front," he said.
Azad said the alliance aimed to unite weaker and deprived sections of society and help them translate their numerical strength into political power to address their longstanding concerns.
Invoking the ideals of Dr B R Ambedkar, he described political power as the "master key" to resolving people's problems. He argued that communities without independent political representation would struggle to safeguard their interests, irrespective of their population.
Azad also referred to Ambedkar's efforts to establish political organisations such as the Scheduled Castes Federation, the Indian Labour Party and the Republican Party of India, saying these initiatives were aimed at ensuring adequate representation for marginalised communities.
He alleged that successive governments had failed to fulfil their promises of integrating deprived sections into the mainstream, eliminating poverty and preventing atrocities against them.
The newly formed alliance is reportedly considering contesting around 150 Assembly constituencies in Uttar Pradesh, although its final seat-sharing arrangement is yet to be announced.
Ahead of the formal alliance announcement, AIMIM's Uttar Pradesh president Shaukat Ali had launched a strong attack on the Samajwadi Party and its chief Akhilesh Yadav. Ali claimed that AIMIM had approached both the SP and the Congress with alliance proposals, but they had rejected them due to their arrogance.
He said AIMIM would challenge Akhilesh Yadav in Uttar Pradesh just as it had challenged RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav in Bihar. Ali further claimed that his party would restrict the SP to just 27 Assembly seats in the 2027 elections.
The Owaisi-Azad partnership is expected to add a new dimension to Uttar Pradesh's political contest, particularly as the alliance seeks to consolidate Dalit and Muslim voters under a common platform.
Muslims account for approximately 20 per cent of Uttar Pradesh's population, while Dalits constitute around 21 per cent. Muslim voters are considered electorally influential in nearly 143 Assembly constituencies, while Dalit voters play a significant role in around 150 seats.
The alliance could therefore pose a challenge to the Samajwadi Party, which has traditionally drawn considerable support from Muslim voters, as well as Mayawati's Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), which has a strong Dalit support base.
However, the extent to which the new political formation can consolidate these communities and translate their support into electoral gains will become clearer as the 2027 Assembly elections approach.