‘Unease factor’ in Congress-Samajwadi Party ties ahead of UP polls: Who is Imran Masood - The Indian Express

The Congress’s decision to appoint Saharanpur MP Imran Masood as working president of its Uttar Pradesh unit ahead of the Assembly elections seems to have caused some unease in ally Samajwadi Party (SP), which sees the move as a “pressure tactic” to bargain for more seats in the polls.

While SP spokesperson Rajendra Chaudhary told The Indian Express that Masood’s appointment would have no adverse impact on his party’s seat-sharing talks with the Congress, some other SP leaders privately expressed discomfort over the development.

“I don’t understand what is in the mind of the top Congress leadership. The new UP Congress president, Aradhana Misra Mona, and her father, Pramod Tiwari, have cordial relations with the SP. Her appointment will only help in smoothening dialogue between the two parties regarding the UP polls. But Masood, through his remarks on the SP, often creates uneasiness. Now, things will depend on how much authority senior Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra give Masood in seat-sharing talks,” said an SP insider.

He said the Congress wanted an “early decision” on seat-sharing, as any delay “could leave it with little choice but to accept whatever seats the SP would offer”. The UP elections are due in February 2027.

A senior SP leader said Masood’s appointment appeared to be both a Congress tactic to secure more seats and an attempt to compete for the Muslim vote, traditionally seen to be with the SP.

“Masood is influential in Saharanpur but not across western UP. He will not be able to disturb the SP’s Muslim votes in this region. But his public  remarks about the alliance and Muslim issues will build pressure on the SP to finalise seat-sharing early and share Muslim-dominated seats with the Congress. The Congress is eyeing anti-BJP votes of regional parties,” the leader said.

Another SP leader said the Congress should clarify whether Masood would have any role in alliance talks. “He is continuously demanding early finalisation of the alliance. He should speak first with Gandhi before speaking about the SP in the media. All Opposition parties want Muslim votes but none is trying to make inroads into the 42% non-Muslim votes of the BJP,” the leader said.

An SP leader from western UP said Masood’s attempts to put pressure on the party would not work. “The SP will demand all Assembly seats falling under the Saharanpur Lok Sabha constituency. The SP is prepared to contest there,” he said.

Seat-sharing in Saharanpur could be a point of contention between the SP and the Congress. Last month, Masood said the Congress would fight the five seats in Saharanpur that it had contested in 2017. “Hamara majboot jila hai, apna majboot jila thode hi chhod denge (The district is our stronghold. We will not leave it),” he said.

The Congress leaders declined to officially respond to the concerns expressed by SP leaders over Masood’s appointment.

“SP leaders are irritated more with Masood because he had quit them after the 2022 Assembly polls, and later became a Congress MP with the SP’s support in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls. But we are hopeful that things will settle down between both camps soon because the Congress leadership has directed Masood to refrain from further attacks on the SP,” said a senior Congress leader.

A first-time MP, Masood, 56, has been a prominent face in western Uttar Pradesh politics for several years. Carrying forward his family’s political legacy, he was earlier known for controversial remarks. Over the last few years, however, he has sought to shed the image of a Muslim hardliner and has reached out to Hindu voters. He has often been heard saying: “Ram milenge maryada se jeene mein, Ram milenge Hanuman ke seene mein (Ram is found in living a life of dignity, Ram resides in Hanuman’s heart).”

Masood was first elected MLA as an Independent from the Muzaffarabad Assembly seat in 2007. In 2012, the Congress picked him as a youth face in Rahul Gandhi’s team. The same year, he contested the Nakur Assembly seat but lost to the BSP’s Dharam Singh Saini.

Just before the 2014 Lok Sabha polls, a video clip surfaced in which Masood was purportedly seen threatening then BJP’s prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi while blaming the BJP and RSS for the 2013 Muzaffarnagar riots. A case was registered against him for hate speech. In the Lok Sabha polls, he lost to the BJP’s Raghav Lakhan Pal in Saharanpur.

Ahead of the 2022 UP Assembly polls, Masood ended his association with the Congress and joined the SP. He quit the SP in October that year after SP chief Akhilesh Yadav did not give a ticket to him or any of his associates for the Assembly polls. He then joined the BSP, where Mayawati immediately appointed him coordinator for western UP, with additional responsibility for working among Muslims in Uttarakhand.

In August 2023, however, Mayawati expelled Masood from the party, accusing him of indiscipline and “anti-party activities”. He returned to the Congress later that year.

On September 21, speaking to ANI, Masood said Akhilesh’s political activity was “meaningless” unless the alliance was finalised. “Finalise the alliance if you have to have an alliance. If it (the alliance) is not to be done, we (Congress) are going ahead with our preparations. Akhilesh ji should finish this work (alliance finalisation) immediately. If you have to lead, the responsibility is on you. Dil bhi aapko bada karna padega (You will have to have a large heart),” Masood said.

He said the SP should not think of moving ahead without the Congress. “Because if you are going ahead without the Congress, defeating the BJP is not in your mind. Only the Congress can fight the BJP,” he said.

In June 2025, Masood had also stirred the alliance debate by saying the “62-17 formula” would not work in the 2027 Assembly polls, referring to the seat-sharing arrangement between the two allies for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

Lalmani is an Assistant Editor with The Indian Express, and is based in New Delhi. He covers politic... Read More