Op/Ed: What if BJP Breaks its Ties with SAD?

The recent developments seen in the election process of Haryana have left a great impact on the political scene of Punjab as well. With Shiromani Akali Dal (B) extending support to INLD and participating in the election campaign of Chautala’s party, BJP is angry with its old ally. A section of BJP is finding the possibility of BJP contest the state assembly elections on its own.

Historical Prospective

If BJP ends its ties with SAD, a great impact would be seen on the political landscape of Punjab, speculate political experts. It would worsen the condition of the saffron party as Punjab is a Sikh majority state and BJP’s stronghold is in the Hindu community basically who reside mainly in urban areas. If BJP goes alone in the Sikh-dominated state, it could never expect majority in elections on its own as Hindus are minority here. If we go through the history, average performance of BJP witnessed poor whenever it contested the elections without SAD. These facts suggest that without Shiromani Akali Dal, BJP has no future in Punjab and it would never be able to rule over the state on its own.

Ideological Differences

There are certain other implications of “break up” in regard to ideological level. Leadership of SAD has been facing criticism from Panthik sections since Badal tied up with BJP as the latter is Brahmnical from the core and the political wing of Rashtriya Swaimsewak Sangh (RSS), the fascist and anti-minority Hindu communal force. The Panthik sections of Sikhs say the alliance between two ideologically different parties is impossible to be swallowed. Both parties are opposite to each other ideologically. In addition, The RSS does not recognizes the separate identity of the Sikh religion and is working on the mission of incorporating Sikhism into Hinduism by destroying the independent identity of Sikhs. The RSS also manipulates Sikh history and misinterprets Gurbani.

After the break up, the Panthik sections would no longer remain in the position to criticize the SAD on this ground.

Declining Population of Sikhs in Punjab

As Sikhs are gradually getting weak in the state in respect of population as well as of ideology (with the growing influence of deras), it would be difficult for Akalis to get clear majority in the state as well. This situation would be beneficial for Congress. So, Akalis will have to make alliances with other certain parties like Bahujan Smaj Party (BSP).

Some experts say that ’til Parkash Badal is alive, he will not let the parties break-up as he has old friendly relations with BJP’s veteran leaders LK Advani, Atal Bihari Vajpai etc. He knows all tactics on how to maintain the political relationship. Secondly, SAD-BJP tie-up suits for Indian intelligence agencies as they know that the break-up could re-ignite insurgency in the state as they had ended the same by raising the slogan of “communal harmony.” The SAD-BJP ties can be seen as necessary in the context of so-called communal harmony.