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Defying party line, SAD’s Maluka hails PM Modi as Sikh sympathiser
SAD leader Maluka says instead of confrontations, Sikh leadership should meet PM after poll results and discuss all demands and get them fulfilled
BATHINDA : Just a week ahead of the Lok Sabha polls in Punjab, former minister and senior Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) leader Sikander Singh Maluka has put his party in a spot by praising Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Chairman of the SAD’s disciplinary committee, Maluka posted a video on his Facebook page on Friday evening where he lauded Modi’s initiatives for the Sikh community at large.
Maluka’s move against the SAD’s political standings assumes significance as his daughter-in-law Parampal Kaur Sidhu, who is a retired IAS officer, is contesting from Bathinda on a BJP ticket. Maluka’s son Gurpreet Singh has also jumped the ship to the saffron party. Parampal is locked in a multi-cornered contest against SAD’s three-time sitting MP and party chief Sukhbir Singh Badal’s wife Harsimrat Kaur, AAP’s Gurmeet Singh Khudian, who is agriculture in the Bhagwant Mann government, Congress’ Jeetmohinder Singh Sidhu and SAD (A) candidate Lakha Sidhana.
“Instead of confrontations and rallies, the Sikh leadership should meet PM Modi after poll results to get the demands fulfilled,” Maluka said.
In his recent electoral addresses, the SAD chief has been targeting Modi for allegedly indulging in polarising votes on communal lines and giving provocative statements against minorities to garner votes.
Sukhbir has also been terming the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and BJP regime for weakening Sikh institutions and working against the ‘Panth’ and Punjab.
In contrast with his party chief’s stance against SAD’s former ally BJP, Maluka considers Modi as “a leader who has great respect for the Panth”.
Maluka, who was one of the the first leaders to oppose the now-repealed three farm laws, said: “Modi repealed three farm laws, waived GST on langar, opened Kartarpur Sahib corridor, announced Veer Bal Diwas in memory of Chhote Sahibzade and much more. In my opinion, Modi did a lot for the Sikh community. It is high time to do introspection and move ahead with talks rather than confrontation,” he said in the video post.
Maluka also seemed impressed with PM Modi’s recent visit to historic Patna Sahib Gurdwara where he participated in the ‘langar sewa’.
“Modi gave a message to the world and we must appreciate this. We as a community are in the minority and hence, we need to feel proud about this as he is telling the world about the langar sewa being done by Sikhs in gurdwaras in which he too contributed a bit, the SAD leader said, adding that PM’s gesture showed his respect for the Sikh community.
“Our quom has been fighting for rights since centuries. If we look at the situation after Independence, our community has sacrificed a lot and has hardly got any of our demands met. Somewhere there has been a fault in the leadership. A good leader is the one who gets more results than damage to the community. In our case, damage was more than achievement. Now, like-minded people of Punjab must gather and draft a memorandum of our main demands, such as Punjab’s river water sharing issue with Haryana, Rajasthan, the issue of Chandigarh as our capital, farmers’ issues and others and meet the PM,” said Maluka.
The SAD did not immediately comment on Maluka’s video post. When contacted, SAD president Sukhbir Badal’s media coordinator said on Saturday evening that the leader was too busy canvassing across the state.
Parampal joined the BJP on April 11 and the very next day, the SAD chief removed Maluka as the halqa in-charge of Maur.
After being shunted out, Maluka stopped canvassing for the SAD. He has also not campaigned for his daughter-in-law so far.
The two-time legislator, Maluka is considered to have a political influence in several constituents of the Bathinda Lok Sabha seat.
