CHANDIGARH, Aug 7: Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president Sukhbir Singh Badal’s meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi has triggered renewed speculation over a possible political rapprochement between the two former allies ahead of the 2027 Punjab Assembly elections.
Badal met Modi at the Prime Minister’s office in the Parliament House complex on Friday. Although neither side disclosed details of the discussion, the meeting immediately fuelled political talk about whether the SAD and BJP could once again contest elections together in Punjab.
Punjab BJP chief Kewal Singh Dhillon sought to play down speculation surrounding the meeting. He said the Prime Minister represents the entire country and that political leaders from different parties can meet him.
Asked specifically whether the BJP and SAD could revive their alliance, Dhillon said he could not comment on the possibility.
SAD spokesperson and senior leader Daljit Singh Cheema also refrained from giving details of the discussion. Asked about the meeting, he said only that the two leaders had met.
However, senior SAD leader Sikandar Singh Maluka openly backed the idea of the two parties coming together. He stressed that his remarks represented his personal view and not an official party position.
Maluka said the prevailing political situation in Punjab made cooperation between the former allies desirable. He added that public sentiment appeared to favour their return to an alliance.
At the same time, he said any decision on seat-sharing, conditions or a formal electoral arrangement would have to be discussed within the party before a final decision was taken.
BJP Signals Independent Electoral Strategy
The possibility of a renewed partnership comes against the backdrop of repeated statements from senior Punjab BJP leaders that the party is preparing to contest the 2027 Assembly elections independently.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah had said during a rally in Moga in March that the BJP would fight the next Punjab elections with the objective of forming its own government in the state.
Several state BJP leaders have also maintained that the party is preparing to contest all 117 Assembly constituencies on its own.
Sukhbir Singh Badal, meanwhile, said in June that his immediate priority was strengthening the SAD. At that time, he did not offer a clear response when questioned about a possible understanding with the BJP.
Why the Alliance Broke Down
The SAD and BJP had shared a long-standing political partnership before their relationship collapsed over the Centre’s farm legislation.
The Akali Dal withdrew from the BJP led National Democratic Alliance in September 2020 after differences over three farm laws enacted by the Centre. The legislation was subsequently repealed following months of protests by farmers.
The two parties had been electoral partners for more than two decades and regularly contested elections together before the split.
Under their previous Punjab Assembly arrangement, the SAD contested 94 seats while the BJP fought on 23. In Lok Sabha elections, the Akali Dal traditionally contested 10 seats and the BJP the remaining three.
The alliance successfully formed governments in Punjab three times, covering the periods from 1997 to 2002, 2007 to 2012 and 2012 to 2017.
Electoral Equations After the Split
Following the separation, the BJP entered the 2022 Punjab Assembly elections in alliance with SAD (Sanyukt) and former Chief Minister Amarinder Singh’s Punjab Lok Congress. Amarinder Singh’s party subsequently merged with the BJP.
The 2022 election proved challenging for both former allies. The BJP secured two Assembly seats, while the SAD won three.
The parties again contested separately in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. Together, they secured around 33 per cent of the vote but managed to win only one parliamentary constituency, with Harsimrat Kaur Badal retaining Bathinda for the SAD.
The BJP, despite failing to win any of the 13 Lok Sabha seats it contested in Punjab, significantly improved its vote share. Its support increased from 9.6 per cent in 2019 to nearly 19 per cent in the 2024 general election.
2027 Punjab Polls Add to Political Calculations
With the Punjab Assembly elections approaching, the Badal-Modi meeting has added a new dimension to the state’s evolving political landscape.
A formal agreement between the two parties would require negotiations over seat-sharing, leadership, campaign strategy and the broader political terms of cooperation. For now, neither the SAD nor the BJP has officially indicated that talks on restoring their former partnership are underway.
The meeting therefore remains a significant political development, but whether it translates into an electoral understanding will depend on future discussions within both parties.