With the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) threatening to “separate” from the old ally Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) over the saffron party’s meddling in the management of Sikh religious places, SAD (Takshali) president Ranjit Singh Brahmpura on Friday said the two parties will end their alliance in Punjab soon as the BJP is aware of the Badal family’s dwindling graph in the state politics.
In a press statement, Brahmpura – a SAD member of Parliament who revolted against the Badal family and formed the SAD (Takshali) to take on the SAD, said the SAD-BJP alliance would be broken before the ensuing Lok Sabha elections.
“At present the whole world is well acquainted with the acts of Badals during their ten year rule and the Badal family deceived the people of state and the Sikh Community so therefore the people of Punjab will not spare the Badal family at any cost,” he said.
Brahmpura said due to the bad deeds of the Badal family, BJP-led government has been facing embarrassment all over the world and in such circumstances no party will continue their alliance with the Badal family. He said people of Punjab have already shown the exit door to Badals and now the Badal family is doing politics on religious issues only to get sympathy of Sikhs but there is no benefit in doing such petty politics.
“The daughter-in-law of Parkash Singh Badal family Harsimrat Kaur Badal would play a key role in breaking the SAD-BJP alliance by resigning as Cabinet minister from the Central government to uphold the sentiments of Sikh community by doing politics over religious issues. But now whatever Badal family does, people of Punjab will not believe them,” he added.
In a sign of growing rift between the two parties, the SAD boycotted an NDA meeting called by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the first day of the Budget Session. Senior SAD leader and Rajya Sabha Member of Parliament (MP) Naresh Gujral said the BJP had not done anything about the party’s warning to not meddle in management of religious places. He warned that if the BJP does not take any steps on SAD’s demands, the Akali Dal would part ways with the BJP.
Gujral also said the BJP had failed to rein in its leaders who make provocative statements against minorities and ignored its demands for a package for farmers. “Our party has told the BJP to keep off Gurdwara management affairs and not interfere in our religious matters. But the RSS (Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh) keeps meddling with the Sikhs’ religious affairs. We cannot allow that,” Gujral told a newspaper.