No need for Sukhbir to quit, says SAD leader Daljit Singh Cheema

Sukhbir on Sunday said that he was ready to quit as the party chief if the party wanted him to do so.

Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) leader and former minister Daljit Singh Cheema said there was no need for party president Sukhbir Singh Badal to quit.

Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) leader and former minister Daljit Singh Cheema(HT Fil)

“Sukhbir is the backbone of the Shiromani Akali Dal. Nobody has asked for his resignation and there is no need for him to quit,” said Cheema.

Talking to the media in Amritsar on Sunday, Sukhbir said he was ready to quit as the party chief if the party wanted him to do so. His statement came amid a virtual revolt by a section of party’s old guard.

Defending the party chief, the former minister said it was under Sukhbir’s leadership that the party remained in power for 10 years in the state. Besides, the party also won Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) and Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee (DSGMC) elections, her added.

Replying to a question on resignations of veteran Akali leaders Ranjit Singh Brahampura and Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa and statements being made by former MP Ratan Singh Ajnala, Cheema said the three leaders were senior to him and he did not want to comment about them. But the party is not limited to only three persons, he said.