Despite attaining absolute majority in Punjab, the Shiromani Akali Dal and its ally Bharatiya Janata Party lost its vote share in comparison to Congress which failed to live up to its expectations in the poll results of the 117 member assembly.
The SAD-BJP alliance on Tuesday created history in Punjab by storming back to power for a second consecutive term, breaking a 46-year-old jinx.
Shiromani Akali Dal created history on Tuesday to become the first party ever to retain power in Punjab bucking the anti-incumbency factor with Parkash Singh Badal, the grand old man of the state politics, and his son Sukhbir Singh leading the charge.
Bharatiya Janata Party president Nitin Gadkari is confident that his party will come back to power in Uttrakhand as well as Punjab, where it has an alliance with the Shiromani Akali Dal. He also believes that the party will fare way better in Uttar Pradesh than the predictions made by several exit polls. "I am confident that we will win the elections in Uttrakhand and Punjab," he said.
Addressing mediamen at Wishvkarma Gurudwara at Mandi Dabwali, the president of the Shiromani Akali Dal Amritsar (Panj-Pardhani) Daljit Singh Bittu said the Dera chief should be arrested and his activities should be stopped by the Union government. Protestors will pray at the Golden temple in Amritsar on July 19 before leaving for Delhi, Bittu added.
The Badals and Cheema had moved the top court challenging the August 2021 order of the Punjab and Haryana High Court refusing to quash the summons against them by additional chief judicial magistrate, Hoshiarpur in a private complaint filed by Social activist Balwant Singh Khera on the charges of forgery, cheating and concealing facts.
The Lok Sabha on Wednesday suspended the Question Hour and took up for discussion an Opposition-sponsored adjounment motion on the Nanavati Commission report.
Several legislators in states on Monday said they have cross-voted in favour of National Democratic Alliance nominee Droupadi Murmu by not following their respective party lines in the presidential election.
the SAD president said that the Prakash Singh Badal government had failed to control the law and order situation in the state, arising out of the Dera Sacha Sauda controversy.
Demanding an enquiry into the whole incident, Badal demanded exemplary punishment for the guilty.
Sangrur Senior Superintendent of Police G S Dhillon said the SAD (A) leader was arrested under sections 107/151 (apprehension of breach of peace) of the Indian Penal Code.
Repeated requests by Deputy Speaker Charanjit Singh Atwal failed to restore normalcy forcing him to adjourn the House.
"The SAD and BJP are united and there are no differences between us whatsoever and as far as the appointment of deputy chief ministership we would sort out the matter in a mutual consultations and not through the media," he said.
Sukhbir declared that there will be no political vendetta against the former chief minister and his colleagues, but if complaints are received they will certainly be looked into.
Rajnath Singh, president of the Bharatiya Janata Party, has predicted two third majority for the Shiromani Akali Dal and Bharatiya Janata Party alliance in the Assembly polls in Punjab for which the voting will conclude at 5 pm on Tuesday.
DSGMC chief Paramjit Singh Sarna, who defeated SAD for a second time in committee elections last month, also demanded in a statement that the SGPC, the top Sikh religious administration controlled by Badal's SAD, take action against Sidhu.
On sensitive matters, the manifesto said a relentless struggle would be waged to secure justice for the state on issues like river water and transfer of Chandigarh and other Punjabi-speaking areas to Punjab.
Besides campaigning for SAD-BJP candidates in Gurdaspur parliamentary constituency, Khanna will campaign extensively for his party colleague Navjot Singh Sidhu, who is contesting the Amritsar parliamentary by-election
Jalandhar is a stronghold of Dera Sach Khand, a Sikh sect comprised of mainly Dalits who took to the streets in protest against the death of one of their gurus Sant Raman Nand during a clash between rival Sikh communities in a Vienna Gurudwara.
After spending two nights in jail, cricketer-turned-politician Navjot Singh Sidhu, convicted and sentenced for three years imprisonment in a road rage case, was released on Saturday on bail granted by the Supreme Court.
Barnala, who is currently out on bail, was present in the Court. The SAD MLA from Dhuri was arrested on August 12 after his maid charged him with raping her.
Chief Minister Amarinder Singh and the opposition SAD-BJP are at loggerheads over who will inaugurate the bridge in Gurdaspur district.
Garg had questioned Punjab Chief Minister Amrinder Singh's criticism of Pakistan while Mali gave a controversial remark on Kashmir.
The case has been registered against the former Punjab chief minister for allegedly amassing wealth disproportionate to their known sources of income.
"If the government is convinced that he is innocent and that he has been a victim of mistaken identity, it should move ahead to save him," BJP spokesman Prakash Javadekar said.
In India, under the anti-defection law, a three-line whip can be violated only by more than one-third of a party's strength in the legislature
high level delegation led by Shiromani Akali Dal President Sukhbir Singh Badal will visit Mumbai on Tuesday to meet the members of the family of Balkar Singh, who was killed in the incident of firing allegedly by private security guards of Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmit Ram Rahim Singh.
Aam Aadmi Party calls Bhagwant Mann its people's choice for CM candidate in Punjab. Syed Firdaus Ashraf/Rediff.com traces what makes Mann so indispensable for his party.
Ace Indian athlete Manjeet Kaur's preparations for the Beijing Olympics received a major boost when a New Delhi-based real estate group handed her Rs 34 lakh to train under an American coach in California. The cheque was presented to the 400 metres runner, a Punjab Police Inspector, by Rohtas Goyal, chairman of the Omaxe Group, in the presence Shiromani Akali Dal president Sukhbir Badal and state DGP N P S Aulakh.
He said he visited the holy place following requests from people there, including Ujjal Dosanjh, the Health Minister of Canada.
Close on the heels of developments in Karnataka, an uneasy relationship prevails in Punjab where the ruling Shiromani Akali Dal and its ally Bharatiya Janata Party appear to be in sombre mood over certain contentious issues, including the recent proposed hike in power tariff by the state government.
"Akali Dal is a part of the NDA but it is a separate political outfit. They have taken this decision because of some political reasons. We have an alliance (SAD-BJP) but both are different political outfits. They (SAD) have taken a political decision," said Sharma.
Sunita Kejriwal and daughter Harshita Kejriwal will seek votes for chief ministerial candidate Bhagwant Mann in the Dhuri assembly seat.
Shiromani Akali Dal Chief Parkash Singh Badal will take oath as the chief minister of Punjab on Friday.
Zee Entertainment Enterprises, co-producer of Kangana Ranaut's film Emergency, on Friday told the Bombay high court it has agreed to the cuts suggested by the censor board.
Arun Jaitley, general secretary in charge of Punjab, left by the backdoor to avoid enraged supporters of those who have denied party nominations.
A Patiala court rejected their bail pleas in the disproportionate assets case.
For Sikhs, they say, honour is the bottom line; and whatever the state of the SAD's political fortunes today, arrogance will not be helpful in the negotiation.
