Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday launched a sharp political attack on Akali Dal during his public rally in Jalandhar, indicating that BJP is preparing to contest the 2027 Punjab Assembly elections on its own.
While addressing the gathering after inaugurating several railway and road projects, Modi criticized the Akali Dal, AAP and the Congress, saying all three parties have failed to put Punjab's interests first.
Political observers believe Modi's direct criticism of Akali Dal is significant because the BJP and SAD were long-time allies in Punjab. Their alliance ended during the farmers' protest in 2020-21, since then, both parties have contested elections separately, and Modi's latest remarks are being seen as a strong indication that the BJP has no plans to revive the alliance before the 2027 Assembly elections.
Addressing the rally, Modi said the Akali Dal has become more concerned about its own political survival than public welfare. "The Akali Dal, too, is caught in the same cycle of self-interest, placing political survival above public service," he said.
Without naming any possibility of an alliance, the Prime Minister repeatedly projected the BJP as the only party capable of bringing development and change to Punjab and he said that although the BJP is not in power in the state, the Central Government has continued to support Punjab's development.
"Although BJP is not in power in Punjab, the Centre is leaving no stone unturned to ensure the state's development and added that only the BJP can bring real change in Punjab," Modi said, he further claimed that the BJP would make Punjab developed and self-reliant if given an opportunity.
"New investments will come to Punjab, new employment opportunities will be created in Punjab, and products made in Punjab will reach every corner of the world and these tasks will be accomplished by the BJP alone," he said.
The Prime Minister also targeted the ruling AAP government in Punjab, referring to AAP national convenor Arvind Kejriwal's description of his party as "kattar imaandar", Modi mocked the party by calling it "kattar beimaan" (staunchly dishonest) and he further alleged that the AAP government lacks both honesty and clear intentions and also raised concerns over the law and order situation in Punjab.
Modi did not spare the Congress either. Referring to the internal differences within the Punjab Congress, he said the party is more focused on leadership battles than solving the state's problems. "The chair politics in Congress in Punjab never ends. They are not fighting for what benefits Punjab. Their fight is over who gets to keep the chair," he said, in an apparent reference to the differences between Punjab Congress president Amarinder Singh Raja Warring and the camp led by former Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi.