Dist BJP leaders not to support SAD candidate

Our Correspondent

Tarn Taran, February 5

In a major setback to the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), the district unit of the ruling alliance partner BJP has asked its workers not to support to the SAD candidate in Khadoor Sahib byelection.

BJP district president Navreet Singh Safipur said in a statement here today that during his two-day election tour of the area, Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal not once sought BJP's support for his party's candidate. This hurt the BJP activists and instructions had been issued to party cadre not to support the SAD candidate in the byelection.

The SAD never lost any opportunity to run down its alliance partner BJP, Safipur alleged. He said the BJP had now decided to not only oppose the SAD candidate, but also support any of the better candidates in the constituency.

The strain in SAD-BJP relations was visible on a number of occasions in the past as well. A violent clash was witnessed between BJP and SAD activists during the nagar council election last year here.

Meanwhile, the Zamhoori Kisan Sabha (ZKS) has extended support to Independent candidate Sumail Singh Sidhu, leader of the Punjab Sanjha Morcha. ZKS state leader Pargat Singh Jamarai addressed joint election meetings in the area in support of Independent candidate Sumail Singh Sidhu. Jamarai said they were supporting Pargat Sidhu in protest against the repressive attitude of the ruling SAD.

Meanwhile, Rajya Sabha member Avinash Rai Khanna, who was in Patiala today, said the SAD-BJP alliance would continue and both parties would contest the 2017 Assembly elections together. The BJP MP said the party high command would have a complete say in the appointment of the next BJP president and the decision would be acceptable to all state leaders.

Khanna said the decision on the new president of the party’s state unit would be taken by BJP president Amit Shah.

Earlier, the Punjab State Medical and Dental Teachers Association, Patiala, submitted a memorandum of their demands to Khanna during his visit to the Government Medical College, Patiala.