Shiromani Akali Dal swaps two seats with ally BSP

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, September 8

The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) on Wednesday decided to take back Amritsar (North) and Sujanpur seats from its alliance partner — Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) — and give it Sham Chaurasi and Kapurthala Assembly seats.

Former BJP leaders who joined the SAD recently will be fielded from the swapped seats.

Though some rebel BSP leaders were lobbying for Phillaur, Adampur seats in Doaba, where the party has a strong base, the two parties agreed on Sham Chaurasi and Kapurthala. SAD president Sukhbir Singh Badal announced the decision today.

Last month, the SAD declared its candidates from Amritsar (North) and Sujanpur constituencies. At that time, Badal had said the decision was taken with the consent of the BSP.

While Sham Chaurasi seat is reserved for Dalits, Kapurthala is a general seat. Interestingly, the BSP won from Sham Chaurasi in 1992. After that the SAD has won the seat thrice, while the Congress has done so twice, including in the last Assembly elections.

The Congress has registered four consecutive wins from the Kapurthala seat. The SAD won it in 1997. The BSP has nothing to boast of from this seat.

As per the SAD-BSP alliance for the 2022 Assembly poll, the BSP will contest 20 of the 117 Assembly seats in Punjab, while the SAD will contest the remaining 94 seats.

Sham Chaurasi amp; Kapurthala for BSP

BSP has got Sham Chaurasi and Kapurthala in return. The party last won Sham Chaurasi way back in 1992. Kapurthala has been a Congress stronghold, registering four consecutive wins.

Anil Joshi meets Bathinda traders

Former Cabinet Minister Anil Joshi on Wednesday held a meeting with traders in a private hotel at Bathinda. Joshi said the problems faced by the business sector would be resolved if the SAD-BSP coalition government came to power.