CHANDIGARH: The BJP on Monday stepped up its bid to tap the Shiromani Akali Dal’s political legacy in Punjab by inducting Major Bhupinder Singh Badal, cousin of late SAD patriarch Parkash Singh Badal and his political adviser for 25 years, along with his son Amarveer Singh Badal into the party.The high-profile induction at Haryana CM Nayab Singh Saini’s residence, Sant Kabir Kutir, in Chandigarh, in the presence of Punjab BJP president Kewal Singh Dhillon, assumes significance ahead of the 2027 assembly polls, as the BJP seeks to expand beyond its traditional support base and emerge as a principal political force in the state.Bhupinder Singh Badal’s entry gives the BJP a direct association with the Badal family and its decades-old political network. Amarveer Singh Badal, president of the Sanaur Municipal Council, also joined the party. AAP leader Pradeep Joshan and several other leaders were among those inducted.Saini projected the inductions as evidence of the BJP’s growing appeal in Punjab and claimed that the party would form the next government in the state. He attacked both the AAP and Congress, alleging that their governments had failed to fulfil electoral promises and that people were now looking towards the BJP.The Haryana CM also launched a sharp attack on Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann over his reported reference to the turban as “nakli”, saying the remark amounted to an insult to the Sikh Gurus and demanding an apology from Mann to the people of Punjab.Saini said a BJP government would create a favourable environment for industry and employment, launch a strong crackdown on drugs, and develop Punjab’s sporting ecosystem on the lines of Haryana.The induction of a close relative and long-time political associate of Parkash Singh Badal gives the BJP a significant symbolic entry into the Akali legacy at a time when the party is attempting to carve out an independent political identity in Punjab.The move also signals that the BJP’s Punjab strategy is increasingly centred on drawing established political figures and networks from the traditional Akali space into its fold rather than remaining dependent on its erstwhile alliance with the SAD.
