Political compulsions made us back INLD: Sukhbir

With alliance between the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) and the Bharatiya Janata party (BJP) running successfully in Punjab for the past several years, both the parties have been going through paradoxical situation in Haryana.

With alliance between the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) and the Bharatiya Janata party (BJP) running successfully in Punjab for the past several years, both the parties have been going through paradoxical situation in Haryana.

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If SAD president and deputy chief minister Sukhbir Singh Badal, who was here in Patiala for campaigning in favour of party candidate Deepinder Singh Dhillon, is to be believed, apart from cordial family ties,”political compulsions” have made them to go with the Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) in Haryana.

“Our alliance with the INLD in Haryana is older than with that of the BJP. Our commitment with INLD leaders made us not to have any second thought while going against our state co-partner BJP”, Sukhbir said.

Deputy CM and CM Parkash Singh Badal have left no stone unturned to exhort BJP’s Haryana units to have an alliance with the INLD. But the BJP turned down the suggestion, citing alleged corrupt practices of INLD leaders, including seniormost leader of the party Om Prakash Chautala in the JBT scam.

“We don’t share a good rapport with senior leaders of the Haryana Janhit Congress (HJC) with whom the BJP has formed an alliance to contest in Haryana. This made us to go with the INLD”, Sukhbir said.

When asked whether this would influence political scenario in Punjab, Sukhbir said the situation won’t have any effect on the SAD-BJP relations.