Sukhbir Singh Badal has resigned as SAD president, the Shiromani Akali Dal party has said in a statement that was issued by senior leader Daljit Cheema. This was accomplished on Saturday when Badal forwarded his letter of resignation to the party’s Working Committee to set the pathway to electing a new president.
On social media, in the post published on the platform X, Cheema wrote the following: “Sukhbir Singh Badal has resigned from the post of the president of the SAD in order to enable the organization to elect a new president. He also thanked all the party leaders and workers for entrusting him with leadership and for supporting him so wholeheartedly throughout his term.”
The happening came hot on the heels of Badal’s call on the Akal Takht Jathedar asking the latter to declare a punishment for religious misconduct against him. Badal has been declared ‘tankhaiya’ (guilty of religious misconduct) by Sikhism’s supreme holy shrine Akal Takht Sahib through its Jathedar Giani Raghbir Singh For actions said to have been committed by the SAD and its government during its 2007-2017 tenure. The specific punishment that the Jathedar has hoisted is yet to be proclaimed But Badal’s resignation is considered by many to be a huge step given these circumstances.
This is not the first time when a significant reorganisation within the SAD has occurred recently. As a result of a meeting held in Chandigarh in July, the party dissolved its core committee. Cheema, however, said this at a time when he had assured that the core committee would be reshuffled shortly. The Working Committee had also given the powers to Sukhbir Badal to carry out restructuring of party.
The changes within the SAD are taking place at the time when the party faces some difficulties: political and religious scandals. People see that Badal’s resignation represents some efforts to solve these problems and to pave the way for a new leadership of this party. The success of the next presidential elections is believed to determine the future of SAD.
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