Chandigarh, February 18 Punjab AAP leader Jagroop Singh Sekhwan on Wednesday alleged that the rally held by the Shiromani Akali Dal (Badal) in Qadian on Tuesday was aimed at "saving Sukhbir" rather than addressing the issues of Punjab.
Addressing a press conference here, Sekhwan claimed that although the rally was projected as a Qadian event, people were mobilized from various parts of the state, including Gurdaspur, Ropar, Ludhiana, Hoshiarpur, Tarn Taran and Amritsar districts.
Sekhwan, who was accompanied by AAP MLA Gurdeep Singh Randhawa, alleged that despite repeated announcements of large-scale joining, not even a single panchayat member joined the Akali Dal during the rally.
"They kept claiming that 25 to 30 sarpanches would join, but not even one panchayat member joined. Only their old cadre was present," he said.
Pointing to what he described as internal divisions within the Akali Dal, Sekhwan said that Bikram Singh Majithia did not attend the rally.
He claimed that Majithia's absence from the party's rally in the Majha region reflected growing rifts and the existence of multiple power centres within the party.
Referring to statements made by former Akal Takht Sahib Jathedar Giani Raghbir Singh, Sekhwan alleged that Sikh institutions had been turned into business ventures and that there were irregularities in the functioning of the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) including the alleged sale of gurdwara land at throwaway prices and commercialisation of religious services.
Questioning Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president Sukhbir Singh Badal's appeal for another chance to rule the state, Sekhwan said the Badal family had been given power five times.
He alleged that incidents of sacrilege, the spread of drugs and the rise of gangsters took place during their tenure.
Sekhwan also criticised the party's announcement of its candidate for Qadian, alleging that the nominee was facing multiple criminal cases.
He asserted that the people of Punjab had rejected the Akali Dal in the 2022 assembly elections and would not support it again, adding that the larger battle ahead would be to free gurdwaras from the control of the Badal family.