What does the launch of a new political party with radical background mean for Punjab?

On January 14, a new party was launched in Punjab at the historical Maghi Mela, an important religious gathering in the state, commemorating the sacrifice of Sikh warriors at the battle of Muktsar (with the Mughals) in 1705. Called the Shiromani Akali Dal (Waris Punjab De), the party was announced by Tarsem Singh, the father of the jailed separatist leader, Amritpal Singh, who won the Lok Sabha elections from Khadoor Sahab constituency last year. Among those who were present during the formal announcement was an assortment of separatist voices from the state including Faridkot MP, Sarabjit Singh Khalsa, who is the son of Beant Singh, one of Indira Gandhi’s assassins. The party will elect its president on April 13 (Baisakhi), and it is likely to be Amritpal Singh himself.

The announcement of the new party is a cause of worry for the original Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), whose fortunes in the state have been dwindling over the past decade. No amount of appeasement of the Sikh clergy has worked in its favour so far. The party began to lose its core voter (Sikh peasantry) after what is seen as its mishandling of the beadbi issue – incidents of desecration of the Guru Granth Sahib. This led to the Congress victory in the state in 2017.

Before that, defying the usual pattern in the state, SAD had won twice, prompting Sukhbir Badal in 2012 to coin the slogan: Raj karenge pachees saal (we will rule for 25 years). In 2017, the party was reduced to 15 seats in a 117-member assembly. In 2022, this came down to three. In the last Lok Sabha elections, it only managed to retain one seat. 10 of its 13 candidates lost their deposit, bringing the party’s vote share to an all-time low of 13 percent. The debacle resulted in rebellion in the party with a group calling for the ouster of Sukhbir Badal. The matter finally went to the Akal Takht which ordered Badal’s removal as the party president and that he should perform voluntary services such as cleaning shoes as atonement. His resignation was also accepted by the party on January 10.

After the new party’s announcement, though, Badal put up a brave front. He is hoping that his loyalists within the party will prevent his ouster and re-elect him in the upcoming party elections. At the Maghi Mela, Badal, flanked by his loyalists, said that his father had always worked for the welfare of Punjab and that it was saddening that the senior Badal had worked against the interests of the community.

What does the launch of the new party mean for Punjab, and more importantly for the original Akali Dal? Those who know Punjab have been speaking of a political vacuum in the state that then makes space for radical elements like Amritpal. The rural peasantry moved away from the Badals, especially the young, who chose to then vote for the Aam Aadmi Party. The state needs immediate interven­tion, on issues of drugs, of unemployment, involuntary migration, and an agrar­ian crisis also looms large. People were becoming restless and wanted immedi­ate results. This is why Amritpal became popular very fast and then also managed to win as an independent candidate by defeating his nearest (Congress) rival by a margin of almost two lakh votes.

Political watchers believed that the rise of the new party will cut into the votes of Badal’s Akali Dal. It will also lead to a further polarization between the Hindus and the Sikhs, which may also offer a little advantage to the BJP. But in a state scarred by a long and deadly Sikh insurgency, a deepening space for radical politics does not augur well.

AkaliAmritpal SinghMaghi MelaMuktsarPunjabSADSukhbir Badal