Dissidents ‘elect’ Dhindsa as ‘SAD chief’; party terms move illegal
LUDHIANA: A faction of dissident Akali leaders on Tuesday “elected” Rajya Sabha MP Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa as the SAD president at a gurdwara here, a move dubbed as “illegal and fraud” by the party.
Currently, Sukhbir Singh Badal is the party president.
Dhindsa, along with his son and former state finance minister Parminder Singh , was expelled from the SAD in February this year for “anti-party” activities.
Proposing the name of Dhindsa for the post of the president, two-time Lok Sabha member Parminder Kaur Gulshan said “newly elected president” of the SAD, will function from the party office in Amritsar. Jagdish Singh Garcha and Harjit Kaur Talwandi, daughter of former party chief late Jagdev Singh Talwandi, seconded the proposal.
Meanwhile, Shiromani Akali Dal’s senior leader Daljit Singh Cheema described this move as “illegal and fraud” and accused the expelled leader of acting at the behest of the Congress.
However, Dhindsa said the party will strive hard to establish the eroded principles of the Sikh politics and liberate Sikh institutions from the “clutches” of Badals. He asserted that they will fight to solve major issues of Punjab and to strengthen the federal system in the country. He said the party will pay a special attention to the farming community and work for improving the condition of Dalits and minorities.
Former Union minister Balwant Singh Ramoowalia; Manjit Singh GK, former president of the DSGMC; former state deputy speaker Bir Davinder Singh; SAD (Taksali) leader Sewa Singh Sekhwan; ex-Punjab minister Jagdish Singh Garcha were present on the occasion.
Meanwhile, a FIR was registered without naming anybody for violating social distancing norms during the event.