Bathinda: Jailed Waris Punjab De co-founder Gurdeep Singh Bukkanwala has announced his candidature for the 2027 Punjab assembly elections from Moga.The announcement was made Thursday via a Facebook post on Bukkanwala’s page. Bukkanwala is a close associate of late Deep Sidhu and incarcerated Khadoor Sahib MP Amritpal Singh. Bukkanwala was arrested in March 2023 under the National Security Act (NSA) in connection with the Ajnala police station clash case. He spent two years in Assam’s Dibrugarh jail, was transferred to Punjab in March 2025 and has been held in Bathinda Central Jail for the last six months. According to the FB post, the decision followed requests from the Sikh sangat (community) and Moga residents. “Initially, the family was not in favour, but yielding to the sentiments of the sangat, it has been decided that he will contest the upcoming elections from the Moga assembly segment,” the post read. Featuring photos of Amritpal, Sidhu and Bukkanwala under the banner of Akali Dal Waris Punjab De, the post appealed for public support with the caption “Mission 2027”. Bukkanwala’s aide Maninder Singh Manuke told TOI that a 20-member campaign team has already been established and is receiving a “massive response” from locals in the Moga area.
