Rahul Gandhi '2024 Prime Minister', banner at Congress office

In a political poster war that recently unfolded in Lucknow, banners appeared outside the offices of both the Congress party and the Samajwadi Party. The Congress banner described Rahul Gandhi as the '2024 Prime Minister' and projected the party's state president, Ajay Rai, as the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh in 2027. Responding to this, Samajwadi Party (SP) state spokesperson Fakhrul Hasan 'Chand' noted that their party was fighting for the rights of marginalized communities and expressed that people favored Akhilesh Yadav as the Prime Minister.

The poster had generated considerable attention, with the ruling BJP dismissing it as an attempt to pressure other opposition parties and describing it as a "pipedream" of Yadav's associates.

The Congress banner, placed by party worker Nitant Singh Nitin, prominently featured images of Rahul Gandhi and Ajay Rai along with the slogan "2024 mein Rahul, 2027 mein Rai, desh-pradesh bol raha hai, haath ke saath aayen" (Rahul in 2024, (Ajay) Rai in 2027, both the country and the state are asking you to come in support of the hand).

While Nitin attributed the banner to the sentiment of party workers and the common people, senior Congress leader Dwijendra Tripathi clarified that it was an expression of the workers' feelings, a common occurrence in politics. In response, the Samajwadi Party underscored that the public's preference was for Akhilesh Yadav to become Prime Minister, emphasizing their party's commitment to the interests of marginalized sections. The political banner war is indicative of the ongoing dynamics within the opposition landscape in India.