India News | RPI (Athawale) to Contest on 25 Seats in UP Polls, to Go Solo if BJP Disagrees

Lucknow (Uttar Pradesh) [India], April 25 (ANI): Union Minister and Republican Party of India (Athawale) president Ramdas Athawale on Saturday announced that his party will contest on 25 seats in the 2027 Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections.

Addressing a press conference in Lucknow, Athawale said that the party aims to contest alongside NDA ally, the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). However, if their demands of contesting 25 seats alongside the BJP remain unfulfilled, the party said that it will go solo in the Uttar Pradesh polls.

Also Read | Bihar Shocker: Ward Councillor Raja Babu Thakur Killed in Knife Attack, 3 Critically Injured After Violent Clash in Saran.

"In Uttar Pradesh, the party will contest 25 seats as an ally of the BJP. If this demand is not met, the party will contest the assembly elections alone," he said.

Going into the elections next year, Athawale asked the BJP to grant five acres of land to families of the Dalit community in villages and construct community centres.

Also Read | Is There Sunday Mega Block on April 26, 2026? Will Mumbai Local Train Services Be Affected on Central, Western, Harbour and Transharbour Lines? All You Need To Know.

"Goondaraj has ended under Yogi Adityanath ji, and the Ram Temple issue is also resolved now. I have one demand for Yogi Adityanath, that Dalits in villages should be given five acres of land per family. This will resolve the issue of migration to cities, and people will be pulled out of poverty. The Dalit community demands that the state government construct 'Samaj Bhavans' (community centres) in villages. We will meet Yogi Adityanath today and urge him to take RPI together," he said.

RPI(A) is primarily a Maharashtra-based party working for the Dalit community. In the recent past, the party had contested three seats in Bihar and 18 seats in the Tamil Nadu Assembly elections.

In the 2024 Maharashtra Assembly elections, RPI(A) contested 31 seats, winning none.

In the Lok Sabha elections, RPI(A) chief Ramdas Athawale managed to win a seat in 2004. Apart from that, the party has not been able to open its tally in the General Elections. However, the party is part of the ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA), and Athawale is a Rajya Sabha MP and Union Minister.

Uttar Pradesh is set to hold Legislative Assembly elections in 2027. In the last elections, the BJP recorded a thumping victory with 255 of 403 seats, while the Samajwadi Party won 111 seats. (ANI)

(The above story is verified and authored by ANI staff, ANI is South Asia's leading multimedia news agency with over 100 bureaus in India, South Asia and across the globe. ANI brings the latest news on Politics and Current Affairs in India & around the World, Sports, Health, Fitness, Entertainment, & News. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)