Begowal (Kapurthala): Former Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) president Bibi Jagir Kaur rejoined the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) on Sunday, marking her second return to the party fold in just over two years.SAD president Sukhbir Singh Badal inducted the 72-year-old three-time former MLA and ex-Punjab minister at a gathering in her hometown of Begowal in Kapurthala district, appointing her the party’s halqa in charge for Bholath.Kaur quit the Giani Harpreet Singh-led breakaway faction, SAD (Punar Surjit), days after former MP Prem Singh Chandumajra also returned to the Badal-led party. Urging other estranged Akali leaders to return, Badal called on them to unite to “drive the enemies of the Panth out of Punjab.”Speaking on the sidelines of the event, Badal refused to confirm or deny speculation over a renewed alliance with the BJP. “I can’t comment,” he said, while adding that the SAD could align with any party in Punjab’s interest except the Congress, the governing AAP and SAD (Waris Punjab De), terming all of them “anti-Punjab”.On his past allegations that the RSS-BJP interfered in Sikh shrines outside Punjab and attempted to oust him as SAD chief, Badal said, “All issues start getting resolved once you are in the driving seat.”Badal also announced that the SAD would support the women’s reservation and delimitation bills. Asked about his earlier opposition on the ground that population-based delimitation of parliamentary constituencies, “under the garb of Women’s Reservation”, was highly discriminatory against Punjab, he argued, “Earlier, people were made to believe that it would impair the balance but now seats were being increased across the board.”Targeting Khadoor Sahib MP Amritpal Singh, Badal called the jailed leader “a criminal” named in a murder case and accused his family of involvement in the drug trade. “They are not ‘waris‘ (heirs), they are a virus,” Badal said. Taking a swipe at Amritpal’s bail plea to attend his grandmother’s cremation, Badal said that his late father, Parkash Singh Badal, had never sought release from jail even for his daughter’s wedding.Badal also accused AAP MLAs of sheltering drug traffickers for monthly bribes, vowing to eliminate gangsters within three months if voted to power. He further condemned the state govt for awarding the Mukh Mantri Tirath Yatra bus contract to a Delhi-based firm allegedly operating condemned vehicles, calling it a “criminal act.”
