Shiromani Akali Dal, which is facing discord in Punjab, has suffered a major setback. Two-time party MLA Sukhwinder Kumar Sukhi has joined AAP. He became a part of the Aam Aadmi Party on Wednesday in the presence of CM Bhagwant Mann. Mann welcomed Sukhi into the party and said that he has always worked for the welfare of Dalits. Senior AAP leader and party national general secretary Sandeep Pathak were also present on the occasion. Sukhi is a doctor by profession. He was first elected MLA from Banga assembly seat of SBS Nagar district in 2017. After this, in the 2022 assembly elections, he was again elected MLA on an Akali Dal ticket.
Only three Akali Dal MLAs won in the 2022 assembly elections in the state. In this way, after Sukhwinder Sukhi left the Akali Dal, now only two MLAs are left. These days there is a period of division in the Akali Dal. A large faction has opened a front against Sukhbir Singh Badal and is also staking claim on the party. In such a situation, the departure of another MLA is a setback for the Badal family.
Let us tell you that in the general elections too, Akali Dal had won only the Bathinda seat. Harsimrat Kaur Badal has been elected from here, but Akali Dal’s performance on all other seats was very poor. Let us tell you that CM Bhagwant Mann had taunted on this split in Akali Dal by saying that those who used to talk about ruling Punjab for 25 years are not able to take even 25 people along. Akali Dal had recently blamed BJP for this split. Harsimrat Kaur Badal had said that BJP has a hand in causing this rebellion in Akali Dal.