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Top Punjab BJP leader fumes as Badals ignore ally, meet Modi in Delhi
Sanjeev Singh Bariana
Tribune News Service

Balramji Das Tandon, BJP leader Chandigarh, June 15
The Punjab unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has questioned Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal for meeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Ministers in New Delhi without taking along any BJP leader from the state.

Senior BJP leader Balramji Das Tandon said: "I fail to understand how the top leadership of the SAD, which is an ally of the BJP, can even think of not taking along BJP leaders for holding talks with the PM and ministers."

Tandon is heading a committee formed by the BJP high command to go into the reasons for the poor performance of the BJP-SAD alliance in the recent Lok Sabha elections.

Tandon said: "Before submitting the report to the central leadership, it will be discussed at a meeting of the state BJP unit to be held under the leadership of state party in charge Shanta Kumar."

"The SAD leadership should keep in mind that going to New Delhi without BJP leaders will send a wrong message to the Centre," said Tandon.

The BJP leader was commenting on Parkash Singh Badal and Deputy CM Sukhbir Badal's two-day visit to New Delhi to meet Modi. The duo met the PM and later held a press conference in Delhi to brief the media.

Another BJP leader said: "The BJP-SAD alliance in the state is already in trouble and by not taking any state BJP leader to New Delhi can worsen the ties. A cold war is on between the alliance partners after the Lok Sabha elections. Both the parties are holding each other responsible for rise in the price of sand and gravel, role of halqa in-charges, property tax and poor functioning of Suvidha Kendras.

Under such circumstances, the state BJP leadership is keen on reworking the conditions of its functional relationship with the SAD. "We want to renew our political tie-up with the SAD under fresh terms and conditions to provide clean administration to the people. There will be a fresh understanding between the alliance partners for running the government and administration," said the BJP leader.