SAD, BSP form alliance for 2022 Punjab Assembly polls, say will rout ”non-performing” Cong

PTI, Jun 12, 2021, 3:49 PM IST

Chandigarh: The Shiromani Akali Dal and the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) formed an alliance on Saturday for the 2022 Punjab Assembly election, with SAD chief Sukhbir Singh Badal heralding the tie-up as a “new day” in the state politics.

Announcing the tie-up at a joint press conference with BSP”s general secretary Satish Chandra Mishra, Badal said, “Today is a new day in Punjab”s politics, a historic day…a day of big turn in Punjab”s politics.”

He said the SAD and the BSP will jointly fight the 2022 polls and future elections together.

The BSP led by former Uttar Pradesh chief minister Mayawati will fight 20 of the 117 Assembly seats in Punjab, while the rest will be contested by the SAD, he said.

The BSP will contest seven seats in Malwa, five in Majha and eight in Doaba region of Punjab, said Badal, adding the two parties will soon form a coordination committee to jointly chalk out various programmes ahead of the polls.

The leaders of the two outfits said that the alliance will “sweep” the 2022 polls and oust the “non-performing” Congress from power.

The SAD earlier had a tie-up with the BJP and the Badal-led party walked out of the NDA over the farm laws issue last year.

The BJP used to contest 23 seats under its alliance with the SAD.

About the new alliance, Mishra said, “Today is a historic day. BSP, which is a national party, has entered into an alliance with Punjab”s strongest party SAD.”

The parties are joining hands after a gap of 25 years. The SAD-BSP alliance had contested the 1996 Lok Sabha polls together and won 11 out of 13 seats in Punjab.

“This alliance will continue forever now,” Mishra added.

“Each BSP worker supports and welcomes this alliance. SAD and BSP are pro-farmers parties, who have worked for upliftment of Dalits, labourers, weaker sections…,” Mishra said.

This alliance will form the next government, Mishra said.

Badal said he wants to thank Mayawati for playing “an instrumental role in stitching of this alliance”.

“It is a historic day for both parties. The two parties share similar ideologies as both have always fought to upheld the rights of poor, Dalits and weaker sections,” Badal said.

The Akali leader said SAD patriarch and former chief minister Parkash Singh Badal had always worked towards ensuring peace and harmony and brotherhood in the state and worked towards upliftment of farmers, Dalits and backward classes.

He spelled out several schemes and initiatives which were started for the Scheduled Castes and other weaker sections when the Badal senior remained the chief minister for five terms.

He also touched upon the warm relations which the SAD patriarch and BSP founder late Kanshi Ram shared.

Badal lashed out at the ruling Congress, alleging people want to get rid of this regime, which has “looted Punjab”.

“Mission of our alliance is to get rid of this non-performing regime. Our alliance will form the next government and once again ensure peace, brotherhood, communal harmony and overall development of Punjab,” he said.

Hitting out at Chief Minister Amarinder Singh, he said, “We don”t need to say anything about this chief minister, who has lost trust of his own cabinet colleagues, who are now speaking against him.”

Mishra said three “black farm laws is a conspiracy being hatched to snatch land of farmers. We have strongly raised this issue even in the Parliament.”

The BSP leader said SAD had been opposing the farm ordinances and when the BJP led dispensation did not listen they decided to walk out of the alliance.

“SAD and BSP alliance will ensure that these black farm laws are not implemented,” Mishra said.

He also claimed that the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) had welcomed these bills and when they saw growing anger of farmers, they made a U-turn. “People have to be aware of such parties. You have to recognise the face under the mask and our alliance will unmask such outfits,” he said,

Mishra said that Mayawati could not be present on the occasion due to the coronavirus situation.

Mishra alleged that Amarinder Singh government “is anti-farmer and anti-Dalits”.

“People will oust the Congress government and it will be a clean sweep for SAD-BSP alliance,” the BSP leader said.

Later, Sukhbir Badal, Mishra and other leaders of the two outfits went to seek blessing from Parkash Singh Badal here.

Among other Akali leaders present on the occasion are Naresh Gujral, Harsimrat Kaur Badal, Balwinder Singh Bhunder, Charanjit Singh Atwal, Prem Singh Chandumajra, besides SGPC chief Jagir Kaur. BSP senior leader Randhir Singh Benipal and state BSP chief Jasbir Singh were also present.

The seats which the BSP will contest are Kartarpur Sahib, Jalandhar-West, Jalandhar-North, Phagwara, Hoshiarpur, Tanda, Dasuya, Chamkaur Sahib, Bassi Pathana, Mehal Kalan, Nawanshahr, Ludhiana North, Sujanpur, Bhoa, Pathankot, Mohali, Amritsar North, Amritsar Central, Payal and Anandpur Sahib.