Ahead of the Parliamentary elections, Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa-led Shiromani Akali Dal (Sanyukt) merged his party with the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) led by Sukhbir Singh Badal on Tuesday in Chandigarh.
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Terming the merger as a joint responsibility to bring Punjab back on the rails, Mr. Dhindsa said, “There was an overwhelming feeling among our leaders and workers to merge with the SAD to effect unity in the ‘panth’ (Sikhs). Moreover, the entire party felt that Sukhbir Singh Badal expressed heartfelt remorse for the cases of sacrilege which occurred in 2015. Accordingly, I called a meeting of the party’s district presidents yesterday and they gave the go-ahead for the merger,” he said.
Mr. Badal termed the merger as a “merger of two families”, and appealed to Mr. Dhindsa to take on responsibility as patron of the SAD since he was the senior most Akali leader. Mr. Badal also appealed to all SAD leaders who had left the party on one or another pretext, to re-join it saying, “The SAD alone is capable of safeguarding the aspirations of Punjabis”.
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The SAD, which has been going through a challenging time after facing a drubbing in the year 2017 and 2022 State Assembly elections besides a poor show in the parliamentary byelection as well, has been making desperate attempts to regain its relevance in State politics.
Since the past few months, the Akali Dal has been narrowing its focus surrounding ‘panthic’ (Sikh) issues and agenda in an attempt to garner the support of the Sikh community, for which the party claims to be a sole representative. The SAD president had even sought “forgiveness” from the Sikh community for the sacrilege of ‘Guru Granth Sahib’ that occurred during the last SAD-led government.
He had also apologised for not being able to apprehend and punish the culprits during the SAD government’s tenure. The SAD president’s apology to the community and urging them to stay united under the ‘flag of panth’ has been being seen as a move to revitalise the party.