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.
It was not that differences did not crop up over other issues between the two erstwhile allies, but Parkash Singh Badal always ensured that these were amicably resolved and the ties remained intact.
Panthic politics came easily to Parkash Singh Badal. But he was quick to abandon it when it became a problem, points out Aditi Phadnis.
This election will decide in what shape and form the Akali Dal will survive.
Punjab Chief Minister and Shiromani Akali Dal patriarch Parkash Singh Badal said his party would abide by any decision taken by the National Democratic Alliance regarding the upcoming Presidential election.
Punjab Governor S F Rodrigues administered the oath of office and secrecy to Badal at a ceremony held at PCA stadium in Mohali.
However, it was BJP, which put up an unexpectedly impressive performance bagging 19 of the 23 seats it contested.
'The distrust of traditional political parties in Punjab is an advantage for AAP.'
The high-voltage campaign for the February 4 assembly elections in Punjab came to an end on Thursday evening following hectic campaigning by various political parties.
As the results pour in from the five states which have gone to polls, scenes of celebrations can be seen across the nation.
The Sikhs love a good fight, and that's what the Modi government has given them.
Amarinder, 75, was sworn in as the state's 26th chief minister along with nine ministers, including Navjot Singh Sidhu.
The 52-year-old former cricketer and commentator who is also a popular television personality, was nominated to the Rajya Sabha in April.
Two persons were injured in a clash which took place between AAP and Congress workers at Sultanpur village in Sangrur district.
Narendra Modi's ministry expansion makes disdain clear for others who are supposedly allies, quite unlike the Vajpayee-led National Democratic Alliance.
There is anti-incumbency in urban areas. Rural Punjab, the Akali base, will hold the key.
The exit poll results for the recently concluded assembly elections have projected that that BJP arty could emerge as the single-largest party in four of five states except Punjab.
The two parties, however, are in a neck-and-neck race in Manipur and Goa.
'Today is our independence day. Udta Punjab is not just a film anymore. It is a movement and one that has ended in the victory of democracy.'
Modi's NDA is good enough to give a psychological boost to the once 'untouchable' BJP and Modi but if the NDA doesn't get a majority on its own, then walking the last mile will be the greatest challenge of this election for Modi, says Sheela Bhatt/Rediff.com
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