Even as the BJP is learnt to be wooing the Shiromani Akali Dal for a reunion in the coming Punjab Assembly elections, the party has cautioned its Mahayuti partner Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) of taking any step that could cause rift in the three-party ruling alliance in Maharashtra.
A meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president Sukhbir Singh Badal on Friday has triggered buzz around a possible revival of the old alliance. Badal met Modi in the Parliament House on Friday and according to sources, alliance talks were on the meeting’s agenda.
Neither Badal, nor the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) has issued a statement on their meeting, but the sources said the two discussed the situation of law and order, and the functioning of Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann-led Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government in Punjab where assembly elections are slated early next year. But the meeting has triggered fresh speculations that the Akali Dal could once again enter into an alliance with the BJP and re-join the National Democratic Alliance (NDA).
In Maharashtra, the deputy chief minister and NCP chief Sunetra Pawar was advised by a state BJP Minister to not do anything to rock the alliance boat after it came to notice that the NCP chief met Prashant Kishor, who recently won a bypoll in Bihar defeating the BJP.
“Do not take any step that might cause a rift in the alliance,” Chandrashekhar Bawankule, Revenue Minister of Maharashtra and Guardian Minister for Nagpur and Amravati districts, said, appearing to advise Sunetra Pawar.
“This is an internal matter of their party. However, while remaining part of the Mahayuti alliance, no step should be taken that could sow suspicion among alliance partners or harm any party. Everyone must adhere to the Mahayuti’s code of conduct,” the BJP Minister said.
Sunetra Pawar’s NCP is an alliance partner of the ruling BJP in Maharashtra. Eknath Shinde’s Shiv Sena is the third alliance partner. “I have nothing further to say about why she met Prashant Kishor, but there should be no conduct that creates a rift or mistrust within the alliance,” he added.
Kishor met Sunetra Pawar at her official residence ‘Devgiri’ in south Mumbai, said her party functionary Sanjay Khodke. The NCP leader did not share any details of the discussion between Kishor and Pawar.
This is the second time Kishor, who had scripted poll victories for leaders from Narendra Modi and Mamata Banerjee to Arvind Kejriwal, has met Sunetra Pawar since the death of her husband and the then deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar in a plane crash in Baramati in January this year. Following their first meeting a few months ago, her son and NCP leader Parth Pawar had said Kishor was known to his family.
In Punjab, Akali Dal and the BJP were long-time allies, but they parted ways in September 2020 amid differences over the three contentious farm laws, which were repelled by the Centre later. At the time, the Akali Dal had also announced its decision to withdraw from the National Democratic Alliance (NDA). Before that, the two parties had contested six Lok Sabha (1998, 1999, 2004, 2009, 2014, and 2019) and five Punjab assembly elections (1997, 2002, 2007, 2012, and 2017) together.
In the 2022 Punjab elections, which they contested separately, the Akali Dal suffered its worst-ever electoral performance, winning just three seats. The BJP, on the other hand, won just two seats.
In the 2017 Punjab elections, when the two were partners, the Akali Dal won 15 seats and the BJP bagged three constituencies.
But lately, reports have kept emerging that the parties could re-join hands again. Speculations were also rife about an alliance between them for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, but it did not materialise. Later, the Akali Dal won just won one seat in Punjab, while the saffron party failed to open its account in the state.
Despite the split, periodic meetings between senior leaders of the two parties have kept speculation alive about a possible revival of the alliance. Friday’s meeting is also being closely watched for any political signals regarding the future relationship between the BJP and the Shiromani Akali Dal.
Sources said the Akali Dal, the state BJP unit, and the RSS are all in favour of reviving the alliance. Leaders who have joined the BJP from the Congress also favour the restoration of the alliance, and the final call rests with the BJP’s central leadership, sources added. Interestingly, Home Minister Amit Shah during his visit to Moga in March this year had categorically ruled out alliance with Akali Dal.
SAD-BJP’s main rival, AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal, was quick to take note of the PM-Badal meet and asked if an alliance was in the works. “Are the two parties coming together?” he posted on X.
Analysts believe that both the BJP and the Akali Dal will benefit from the revival of the alliance as the BJP has a presence in the state’s urban areas, while the Akali Dal is influential in rural Punjab. During a recent visit to Punjab, BJP president Nitin Nabin had stated that a decision regarding the alliance would be taken at an appropriate time.
Sources have said the BJP wanted the renewal of the alliance on equal footing. Previously, the BJP played the role of junior partner in the alliance, and the Akali Dal always had the upper hand. Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri has, according to sources, also asserted that the BJP would not play the role of a ‘younger brother’ in the alliance anymore.
For months, BJP leaders have maintained that the party would contest the 2027 Assembly elections independently. BJP leaders had repeatedly asserted that the party was preparing to fight the elections on its own in Punjab.
However, according to Akali leaders, details such as seat-sharing can be discussed later and the immediate priority is to improve the situation in Punjab. They believe the security situation in border-state Punjab is precarious and could pose a challenge to national security.
Assembly elections will take place in Punjab early next, along with those in Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Goa and Manipur. The previous elections in 2022 were swept by the AAP, which registered a historic victory and won 92 seats of the 117 constituencies. The Congress which was removed from power by the AAP won just 18 seats.