By PTI
CHANDIGARH: SAD chief Sukhbir Singh Badal on Thursday appointed Manpreet Singh Aiyali as the leader of the Shiromani Akali Dal’s legislature party.
He also appointed MLA Dr Sukhwinder Kumar as chief whip, according to a party statement.
While Ayali represents Dakha in the Punjab assembly and is a three-time legislator, Sukhwinder is a two-time legislator from Banga.
The SAD faced its worst-ever performance in the just-concluded assembly polls as it could win only three seats.
The AAP stormed to power after winning 92 seats in the 117-member Punjab assembly, decimating all rival parties.
Meanwhile, SAD patriarch Parkash Singh Badal on Thursday announced that he will not accept pension as an ex-MLA.
The five-team chief minister was defeated from his home constituency Lambi in the recently-concluded Punjab assembly polls by AAP’s Gurmeet Singh Khuddian.
The nonagenarian asked the Punjab government and the Punjab assembly speaker to divert his pension towards social work, “preferably to help some needy girl students in their education as girls’ education has always remained very close to my heart”.
“They have a right over me as they have always enriched my life with warmth which only daughters can offer. Their affection has lent me strength even in the most challenging moments of my life,” said Badal in a statement here after making a request on the subject.
The former Punjab chief minister said that he had never drawn any pension all his life as he had remained an active legislator from the start.
Badal dismissed as “amusing some propaganda that he had availed of crore worth of pension in the past by virtue of being an 11-time legislator”.
He also urged the speaker to inform him of the necessary formalities in this regard, if any, beyond his written request so that he could fulfil those at the earliest.
“I request @PunjabGovtIndia and Hon’ble Speaker that whatever pension accrues to me as ex-MLA may please be used for the interests of the people of Punjab (Lok hitaan vaaste). It should in no case be sent to me. Formal request in writing being sent separately — Parkash S Badal, former CM,” according to an earlier tweet by the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD).
Badal (94) has been MLA for 11 times and won his first election from Malout seat in 1957.
He had won the Gidderbaha seat five times — 1969, 1972, 1977, 1980 and 1985.
Thereafter, he switched over to Lambi and won it five times in a row in 1997, 2002, 2007, 2012 and 2017.
chief Sukhbir Singh Badal on Thursday offered to resign from his post, owing moral responsibility for the party’s defeat in the Punjab Assembly elections.
His offer of resignation was, however, rejected by the party’s district presidents and senior leaders, according to a statement.
The party also decided to form a high-powered panel to take feedback from its leaders as well people on the election debacle.
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) had stormed to power after winning 92 of the 117 Assembly seats.
The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) had its worst-ever performance in the polls as it could win only three seats.
Sukhbir Badal himself lost from Jalalabad while his father and former CM Parkash Singh Badal lost from Lambi.
During his interaction with the party’s district presidents and the senior leadership, Sukhbir Badal said, “The party and its well-being are supreme for me. I have always acted in the best interest of the party. I own moral responsibility for the party’s defeat and ready to step down.”
The party leadership rejected his offer in unison with many district presidents “bringing on record the hard work and intensive election campaign led by Sukhbir Singh Badal”, the statement said.
A formal resolution was also passed unanimously to express confidence in the leadership of Sukhbir Badal.
The leaders said not only did Badal led from the front but also inspired the party leadership as well as the cadre to give its best.
The leaders said though the results were not as per expectations, the party president could not be faulted in any manner whatsoever.
“People voted overwhelmingly for change and the entire opposition was swept aside in the resultant tsunami,” they said.
The SAD leaders said at many places the voters did not even know the name of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) candidate but voted for it, adopting the narrative of “badlav” (change).
This cost the SAD dearly, they said.
Asserting that all was not lost, the party leaders said the SAD has the ability to “rise like a phoenix from the ashes” and Sukhbir Badal would play a lead role in this.
Previous SAD governments have created benchmarks for development, infrastructure development and introduction of unique social welfare schemes, which are ingrained in the minds of people, they said.
People even wanted to reward the SAD on the basis of its past track record, especially after the non-performance of the Congress government, but were swayed by the voice of change at the last minute, they said.
Badal briefed the district presidents that the party will not only take detailed feedback on the election debacle from them and other party functionaries but also from people.
“A high-powered committee is being formed for this purpose. It will hold the requisite meetings to take necessary feedback and come up with recommendations to rejuvenate the party,” the statement said.
