{"id":60581,"date":"2026-02-18T17:42:00","date_gmt":"2026-02-18T12:12:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/punjabenews.com\/English\/?p=60581"},"modified":"2026-02-18T18:56:14","modified_gmt":"2026-02-18T13:26:14","slug":"badal-dals-qadian-rally-was-about-saving-sukhbir-not-punjab","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/punjabenews.com\/English\/punjab\/badal-dals-qadian-rally-was-about-saving-sukhbir-not-punjab\/","title":{"rendered":"Badal Dal\u2019s Qadian Rally Was About \u201cSaving Sukhbir\u201d, Not Punjab"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">They gathered people from all over Punjab, still nothing big could happen, Not even one panchayat member joined Akali Dal: Sekhwan<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">Punjab News:<\/span> AAP Punjab Senior Leader Jagroop Singh Sekhwan on Wednesday launched a sharp attack on Shiromani Akali Dal President Sukhbir Singh Badal, saying the rally held by the Badal Dal in Qadian was not meant for the people of the constituency or about &#8220;saving Punjab&#8221; but was purely a campaign to \u201csave Sukhbir\u201d and \u201csave the Badal family.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Addressing the media, along with MLA Gurdeep Singh Randhawa, Sekhwan said the rally was projected as a Qadian event, but in reality people were mobilised from across Punjab, including all Assembly segments of Gurdaspur district and even from districts like Ropar, Ludhiana, Hoshiarpur, Tarn Taran and Amritsar. \u201cPeople were gathered from all over Punjab. The youth wing leadership organised youth from across the state. Still, nothing big could happen there,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>He added that despite repeated claims of major joinings, the Akali Dal failed to bring even a single meaningful addition. \u201cThey kept announcing 25 sarpanches will join, 30 sarpanches will join. But not even one panchayat member joined Akali Dal there. They only brought their old cadre, the same people they take wherever they hold a rally in Punjab,\u201d Sekhwan said.<\/p>\n<p>Pointing to what he called growing internal divisions within the Akali Dal, Sekhwan highlighted that Bikram Majithia did not attend the rally. \u201cThis was the first rally in Majha. Majithia is a big Akali face of Majha, and his absence in Qadian proves that internal cracks have emerged in Akali Dal. Two big power centres have formed. A very big rift has come between Sukhbir and Majithia. In the coming time, Akali Dal can split into more parts,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>Sekhwan also referred to revelations made by former Akal Takht Sahib Jathedar Giani Raghbir Singh, saying they exposed how \u201ca particular family\u201d has turned Sikh institutions into a business. He said that irregularities are taking place in SGPC affairs, gurdwara land is being sold at throwaway prices, and religious services are being commercialised. \u201cWhere a path was earlier done for Rs 8,500, now the sangat is being charged up to Rs 5 lakh,\u201d he said, also pointing out that deras are being promoted.<\/p>\n<p>Questioning Sukhbir Badal\u2019s appeal for another chance to rule Punjab, Sekhwan said, \u201cPeople gave the Badal family power five times. What did you do with that power? Sacrilege incidents happened, you gave pardon to Sauda Sadh, you got our Singhs martyred, and then you went to Akal Takht Sahib, you accepted everything, sought forgiveness, accepted tankhah, and later you backed out.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He said Punjab\u2019s people are fully aware of what happened. \u201cDo not think people don\u2019t understand. The sangat knows everything. Punjab will not elect you anymore. Instead, people want gurdwaras to be freed from you,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>On Qadian specifically, Sekhwan criticised Akali Dal\u2019s ticket announcement, saying, \u201cThey announced a ticket yesterday. Their candidate has around 10 criminal cases against him.\u201d He also attacked the party for giving tickets to \u201ccriminals and gangster-linked families,\u201d including citing a case from Tarn Taran. He questioned why \u201csacrificing and traditional families\u201d were sidelined, and said his own family parted ways with Akali Dal because \u201cwe cannot turn our back on the Guru, like Badal family did.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sekhwan said Punjab\u2019s present challenges, gangsters, law and order issues and drugs, are the outcome of Badal rule. \u201cPunjab rejected you completely in 2022. No matter how many rallies you do, people will see through you again and respond to you in your own language,\u201d he said, adding that the bigger fight ahead is to \u201cfree gurdwaras from the Badals.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>They gathered people from all over Punjab, still nothing big could happen, Not even one panchayat member joined Akali Dal: Sekhwan Punjab News: AAP Punjab Senior Leader Jagroop Singh Sekhwan on Wednesday launched a sharp attack on Shiromani Akali Dal President Sukhbir Singh Badal, saying the rally held by the Badal Dal in Qadian was [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":60582,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[19,21,20],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-60581","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-latest","category-political-news","category-punjab"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v26.2 - 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