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BJP’s SAD dilemma: Pressure mounts on high command as clamour for alliance grows
Cadres seek clarity, say uncertainty could hurt party’s prospects in the high-stakes polls due next year
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With several key leaders in the Punjab BJP and grassroots workers pushing for re-stitching the alliance with the party’s oldest ally, Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), ahead of the high-stakes 2027 assembly elections, the pressure is mounting on the central leadership to make its position clear.
While some senior leaders argue that ground realities favour a tie-up, others believe that going solo allows the BJP to expand its footprint in the state. The issue resonated during the party’s core group meeting chaired by Punjab affairs in-charge Satish Poonia on October 11, with leaders warning that continued uncertainty could hurt the party’s prospects in the polls.
Those advocating an alliance include veteran leaders such as former state BJP chief Sunil Jakhar, ex-CM Capt Amarinder Singh, BJP national vice-president Manpreet Singh Badal, former Union ministers Som Parkash and Vijay Sampla, ex-ministers Manoranjan Kalia, Tikshan Sud and Surjit Jyani.
Poonia is learnt to have told the members during the meeting that the final decision on an alliance rested with the BJP’s central leadership, which so far has been maintaining that the party will contest all 117 assembly seats on its own.
The BJP and SAD alliance, which ended in 2020 over the Centre’s now-repealed three farm laws, had formed governments together in Punjab in 1997, 2007 and 2012. Since the end of the alliance, both parties have performed poorly in the two elections they contested separately. In the 2022 assembly polls, their first electoral contest separately in more than two decades, the SAD won only three of the 117 seats — its worst-ever performance — while the BJP managed just two. In the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, the SAD won only one of Punjab’s 13 seats, while the BJP failed to open its account.
Among those opposed to the move are BJP’s parliamentary affairs committee member Iqbal Singh Lalpura, former minister Ravneet Singh Bittu and state BJP organisation secretary Manthari Shrinivasullu. Haryana chief minister Nayab Singh Saini is also said to be against an alliance with the Akali Dal.
At the grassroots, the lack of clarity is also affecting poll preparations, with party workers questioning whether the BJP will contest independently or accommodate an alliance partner.
“When you nurture a constituency, you need to invest time and money. What if we start spending heavily and eventually the seat goes to the alliance partner under the seat-sharing arrangement? The party must make it absolutely clear whether it wants an alliance or not,” said a district president from the Malwa region.
Multi-corner contest might help party
Those opposing an alliance argue that the prevailing political situation offers the BJP an opportunity to expand its footprint independently, particularly with Punjab heading towards a likely multi-cornered contest.
“The present political situation is best suited for the BJP to contest independently. With a multi-cornered contest likely, the party has an opportunity to spread its wings,” said a leader opposed to the move.
Another leader questioned the rationale of joining hands with the SAD when the BJP had sought to make the fight against drugs a central plank of its campaign.
“If the BJP has openly made the fight against drugs its political plank, why should it ally with the SAD, which carries the baggage of controversies surrounding the issue?” another leader asked.
According to information gathered from multiple leaders, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), the BJP’s ideological mentor, is also divided over the question of an alliance.
Signs of thaw
SAD chief Sukhbir Singh Badal meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi at Parliament House in New Delhi in August had fuelled the speculation about both parties renewing their alliance. Those favouring a tie-up are also citing two recent developments as possible indications of a thaw in the relationship.
Union home minister Amit Shah did not target the SAD during his September 30 rally in Jalandhar. Separately, Bathinda MP and former Union minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal deleted a social media post criticising the BJP over the controversy surrounding the entry of police personnel into Bangla Sahib Gurdwara in New Delhi.
The SAD has maintained a silence on the alliance question but is learnt to have indicated privately that discussions are progressing in a positive direction.
Seat-sharing, however, remains a potential sticking point. SAD leaders, who didn’t wish to be named, said the party had reservations about the BJP’s reported demand for more than 45 assembly seats.
“Giving the BJP more than 35 seats would mean surrendering constituencies with a predominantly rural electorate. The BJP still lacks a substantial base in rural areas, and handing over those seats would only benefit the Congress,” said the Akali leader.
