Chandigarh: Sukhbir Singh Badal has appointed former Jalandhar MP Mahinder Singh KP (68) as the in-charge of the Kartarpur Assembly constituency. The announcement was made during Badal’s visit to Kartarpur.
The development comes amid organisational changes in the constituency. Former Akali MLAs Sarwan Singh Phillaur and Avinash Chander had earlier quit the party. Phillaur is now associated with Shiromani Akali Dal (Reform), while Avinash Chander has joined the BJP.
Earlier, the party had placed its trust in Seth Satpal Mall, but he could not deliver the expected performance. Former MC councillor and Zila Parishad member Parmjeet Reddu also served as the constituency in-charge for nearly two years but stepped down after the 2022 Assembly elections. During the last Assembly polls, the seat was allotted to the BSP as part of the Shiromani Akali Dal-BSP alliance.
Party sources said the decision to appoint KP was taken after a series of meetings between SAD (Rural) Jalandhar president Bachittar Singh Kohar, party leader Gurnek Dhillon and local workers. It is learnt that Badal also sought informal feedback from his daughter’s in-laws in village Pattar Kalan before finalising the name, although the family is not directly involved in politics.
Following the meeting on Friday, Badal also visited Pattar Kalan.
