The Congress is preparing to drive a hard bargain with the Samajwadi Party (SP) for the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections, 2027, eyeing between 150 and 200 seats, party sources said on Wednesday.But the party is simultaneously drawing up a battle plan for all 403 constituencies if seat-sharing negotiations fail, they added.Formal alliance negotiations are expected to begin next month, with the Congress seeking an “equal share” in the arrangement. The party, however, has no objection to SP chief Akhilesh Yadav being projected as the chief ministerial face of the alliance, said the sources.“We have no problem with an alliance, but there has to be some compromise from both sides. We will make adjustments and expect others to do the same. If an agreement cannot be reached, we are prepared to contest all 403 seats,” a senior party source said, adding that the party had been working on the ground ahead of the Assembly elections.Congress leaders claim to have analysed electoral data covering the past 20 years to identify constituencies where the party believes it has a legitimate claim. The exercise, sources said, would form the basis of its negotiations with the SP, rather than leaving the identification of the Congress seats entirely to its ally.The positioning points to potentially tough negotiations between the two INDIA bloc partners. Recent reports have also indicated differences over the timing and terms of seat-sharing. Congress leaders have maintained that the party should determine the constituencies it wants rather than simply accepting an allocation decided by the SP.The Congress and SP had fought the 2024 Lok Sabha elections together in Uttar Pradesh, an arrangement that became the foundation for their continuing political partnership. The Assembly contest, however, involves 403 constituencies and is expected to require a fresh negotiation over the size and shape of the alliance.Sources also indicated that changes could be made in the Uttar Pradesh Congress organisation. They haven’t ruled out the possibility of a new state Congress president ahead of the elections either. Ajay Rai currently heads the UP Congress.However, party sources played down suggestions that any possible change would be linked to internal differences, describing it as part of a “routine” organisational exercise.Congress MP Imran Masood is also likely to be asked by the leadership to exercise greater caution in his public statements, said the sources.On the possibility of expanding the Opposition alliance, sources appeared unenthusiastic about Azad Samaj Party chief and Nagina MP Chandrashekhar Azad, saying he had “deviated from the core issue”. Azad has publicly kept his options open for the 2027 election while ruling out any tie-up with the BJP.Meanwhile, the Congress sources were categorical about AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi, alleging that his politics had ultimately helped the BJP and ruling out any alliance with the AIMIM. Owaisi, meanwhile, has publicly expressed willingness to join hands with like-minded parties for the UP elections, while the Congress and SP have previously signalled differing approaches towards such a tie-up.Sources said the SP was free to negotiate with other parties that it wanted to accommodate, but the Congress would take its own position on prospective partners.