PM Modi meets Sukhbir Singh Badal: Speculation of BJP-SAD alliance thaw after six years

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s meeting with Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) chief Sukhbir Singh Badal on Friday has reignited speculation of a thaw between the estranged allies, with leaders in both parties describing it as an “ice-breaker” after nearly six years.

Read more: Shiromani Akali Dal chief Sukhbir Singh Badal meets PM Modi

Within the SAD, the meeting is being viewed as a BJP “charm offensive” at a time when every parliamentary vote carries significance for the ruling party’s legislative agenda, including the proposed constitutional amendments. Party sources, however, said the outreach is driven as much by Punjab’s changing political landscape as by parliamentary arithmetic.

The BJP’s Punjab unit is learnt to favour reopening channels with the SAD, though the central leadership is yet to take a final call. An earlier attempt to revive the alliance ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha polls failed over seat-sharing.

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The BJP-SAD alliance, forged in 1996 and once described by Parkash Singh Badal as a “nahun-maas da rishta”, collapsed in 2020 over the farm laws. Friday’s meeting has once again put a possible reset on Punjab’s political radar.