SAD announces first phase of 2027 Punjab election campaign with 40 rallies starting Feb 17

Chandigarh: The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) on Thursday announced it would kick-start the first phase of the party's election campaign for the 2027 Punjab polls by holding 40 rallies across the state under its mass contact programme, ‘Punjab Bachao – Sukhbir Singh Badal Liyao'. The first rally will be held on Feb 17 in Qadian.The decision was taken by party president Sukhbir Singh Badal after consultation with the senior party leadership.Badal said, "We will take up all the burning issues of Punjab and offer our vision for the state. I am confident that Punjabis will rally around the SAD, which alone is capable of fulfilling their aspirations."Senior SAD leader Daljit Singh Cheema said in the first phase, 40 rallies would be held until Baisakhi on April 13. He added, "Of the total, 28 rallies will be held until March 31, the schedule for which was finalised. The remaining 12 rallies will be held in April."Cheema said, "We have always stood by what we promised in the past. This time also, we will offer our vision for the state, which will cover every section of society, besides focusing on maintaining peace and communal harmony."‘Will highlight the agrarian crisis, Panthic issues'The SAD leader said, "The party would spell out its stand on key issues and reaffirm its commitment to resolving them, including the transferring the state capital, Chandigarh, to Punjab and ending discrimination against the state over its river waters." He also said the party was concerned about the "erosion of the federal structure in the country" and was "committed to defending it strongly." Cheema added, "The erosion of federalism harmed Punjab financially also, as it involves devolution of central funds and the freedom of the states to spend them as per their priorities."He said the rallies would highlight the agrarian crisis, including farmer indebtedness and suicides, and the lack of compensation for losses caused by the 2025 floods. He added that the mass contact programme would also raise the demand for a legal guarantee of MSP, concerns over cuts in fertiliser subsidies, and the need to safeguard farmer interests in the trade deal with the United States."The need for specialised programmes for the welfare of the Scheduled Caste community, increased employment opportunities for youth, and the exposure of corruption, poor law and order, and alleged patronage to the drug mafia by the Aam Aadmi Party govt will also be forcefully raised during the mass contact programme," he said.The SAD leader added, "The party would also focus on discussing Panthic issues threadbare, particularly attempts being made to weaken Sikh religious institutions. We will expose those who are party to this conspiracy, besides appealing to the entire Panth to support the SAD, which has always stood as a bulwark for Sikh pride and prestige."Ends MSID:: 128257329 413 |