‘Beleaguered’ Shiromani Akali Dal opts out of bypoll contest
The Shiromani Akali Dal will not contest the November bypolls, focusing instead on SGPC elections, following Akal Takht's ban on president Sukhbir Badal's campaign.
The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) on Thursday decided not to contest the upcoming bypolls for four assembly constituencies in – Chabbewal, Dera Baba Nanak, Barnala and Gidderbaha— scheduled for November 13.

The decision was taken in a working committee meeting and comes a day after Akal Takht, the highest temporal seat of Sikhs, rejected the party’s plea for allowing its president Sukhbir Badal to campaign.
The Takht had said Sukhbir was pronounced a tankhaiya (guilty of religious misconduct) on August 30 for the ‘mistakes’ committed by his party and government from 2007 to 2017 and thus can’t campaign.
SAD said that it would instead focus on the office bearers elections of Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) fixed for Oct 28.
“We have decided that we will keep ourselves out of the bypolls to the four assembly seats considering the larger panthic interests and maintaining the dignity and respect of the Panthic institutions,” senior SAD leader Daljit Singh Cheema said.
According to Cheema, the party president had taken moral responsibility for all acts of omission and commission during the erstwhile SAD government on behalf of the party and it was felt that “since the head of the party had been forbidden (by Akal Takht) to participate in the byelections, they (party) too could also not participate in the exercise.”
Meanwhile, Akal Takht jathedar Giani Raghbir Singh, in a statement, said that there is no bar on the Akali Dal from contesting the bypoll and the restriction is only confined to the party president.
In a video, jathedar said: “Only Sukhbir Singh Badal who was declared tankhaiya by the Akal Takht Sahib, cannot participate as his matter is under consideration of the five Sikh clergymen.”
Commenting on the decision party leader Mahesh Inder Singh Grewal said that the decision was taken with panthic interests and ‘maryada’ of Akal Takht.
“The party was unanimous that since our party president cannot campaign owing to Akal Takht’s order, there is no point in indulging in the electoral campaign,” he said.
District presidents and constituency (halqa) in-charges attend today’s meeting chaired by working president Balwinder Singh Bhundar.
The party was keen to contest the polls eying a turnaround. SAD’s political stock plunged to its lowest ebb when in March 2022 state polls it could win only three seats in the 117-member state legislative assembly.
Sources in the party revealed that the SAD was on a strong footing at Gidderbaha, Barnala and Dera Baba Nanak. At Gidderbaha Sukhbir was confident of victory, at Barnala Kulwant Singh Kanta son of deceased Akali MLA Kulwant Singh Kittu and at Dera Baba Nanak son of former Kali minister Sucha Singh Langah were getting ready to throw their hat in the ring.
Reacting to the SAD’s decision Akali Sudhar Leher convener Gurpartap Singh Wadala said that the party has read the writing on the wall that they can’t win the elections on any of the four seats.
“They have pushed the onus on the Akal Takht for not contesting. The Akal Takht jathedar has clarified that he had not stopped the party from contesting the polls,” Wadala said.
SAD has become politically irrelevant: AAP
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Thursday said that the SAD had become politically irrelevant by opting out of the assembly bypolls. AAP’s senior spokesperson Pawan Kumar Tinu said the Akali Dal was succumbing to the fear and pressures of the BJP. “Their failure to contest these elections demonstrates political bankruptcy driven by personal and family interests, neglecting the needs of Punjab and its farmers,” said the two-time former MLA.
Tinu, who switched from the Akali Dal to the ruling AAP in April this year, said the SAD once enjoyed significant support in these assembly constituencies, and their withdrawal from the elections was a clear indication of their decline. “People of Punjab will reject the BJP and the Congress, who have historically neglected Punjab and its farmers,” the former chief parliamentary secretary added.
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Dhami is SAD nominee for SGPC polls
Chandigarh SAD vice-president Daljit Singh Cheema on Thursday announced that the sitting president of SGPC Harjinder Singh Dhami will be the party’s nominee for the upcoming polls of the office bearers of the gurdwara body scheduled for October 28.
In a message written on micro-blogging site X, Cheema said that after meeting members of SGPC belonging to SAD and a detailed discussion with senior leaders, the working president Balwinder Singh Bhundar has declared Harjinder Singh Dhami as a candidate for the post of president of SGPC in the election office bearers”.
The rebel Akalis have declared former SGPC president Bibi Jagir Kaur as their presidential nominee.
Dhami was elected as SGPC president for the first time in 2020 and if re-elected on October 28 it will be his fourth year as head of the gurdwara body also called a mini parliament of the Sikhs. Before that, in 2020 Bibi Jagir Kaur was elected as the president and sought re-election in 2020 but was not made the official nominee. In 2023, she contested the polls as a candidate supported by Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa and other factions opposed to the Sukhbir-led Akali Dal.
