Haryana SP president Surendra Singh Bhati told The Indian Express: “When the Congress termed our demand of 17 seats ‘too much’, the SP expressed the desire to contest on 11 seats. The SP later agreed on five seats, but the Congress again called that an excess number… Then the SP agreed to contest on only three seats: Dadri, Hathin and Sohna. We were hopeful because Congress had not declared candidates on these seats.”

Bhati went on to add that the SP “waited for confirmation from the Congress till the last moment”.

Said Bhati, “The Congress has not fulfilled the gathbandhan dharma (duty of the alliance) by not leaving any seat for the SP. We are not happy with this behaviour of the Congress and we have taken it seriously,” Bhati said.

Bhati said the SP workers in Haryana will support the Congress candidates as “per the party high command’s directions” and hoped the “Congress party will invite” the SP “respectfully”.

At a press conference on Friday, responding to a query on the Congress not giving a seat to the SP in Haryana, SP chief Akhilesh Yadav said: “Sawal seat ka nahi sawal jeet ka hai (Victory is more important than seats). We are working and taking forward our party with the same idea.”

Haryana Congress spokesperson Kewal Dhingra said he was not aware of any negotiations with the SP.

“The Congress and SP are allies in the INDIA bloc and the SP leadership has assured of supporting Congress here.”

Another state Congress leader said, “Discussion on seat-sharing failed because SP does not have a strong base in Haryana. SP has some followers in Gurugram and adjoining areas because that area is close to Uttar Pradesh. SP leaders will be invited to those areas for campaigns.”

The SP has never won any seat in Haryana in the past. In the 2019 Assembly polls, SP had contested on four seats; all candidates lost their deposits. The SP had fielded candidates on 34 seats in the 2014 Assembly polls, but all candidates had lost their deposits then too.

After emerging as the third largest party in the Lok Sabha, the SP is eyeing national party status and is looking to expand beyond Uttar Pradesh.

Sources in the SP earlier told The Indian Express that the party wanted to contest seats in Haryana in alliance with the Congress so that it could bargain for the forthcoming Uttar Pradesh Assembly bypolls. “The party will offer seats to the Congress in UP only once it gets a larger share in other states,” said an insider.