Cong had nothing to do with 'election' of Dhindsa as SAD chief: Amarinder Singh

Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh on Sunday said the Congress had nothing to do with the recent "election" of Rajya Sabha MP Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa as SAD president by a faction of dissidents.

Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh on Sunday said the Congress had nothing to do with the recent "election" of Rajya Sabha MP Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa as SAD president by a faction of dissidents. Singh responded to a question during 'AskCaptain' Facebook Live edition.

The CM was asked whether the “election” of Dhindsa as Shiromani Akali Dal president was a Congress gameplan. The CM replied that what happens in the Akali party “is not our job.” “It is not our job to interfere in the Akali party,” he said.

“They keep fighting… History shows that they keep getting divided. There is nothing new in it. At one point of time, there were seven Akali Dals. The Akali party is like a rubber band - it keeps expanding and contracting,” he said, adding, “If Dhindsa could not stay with them after being part of SAD his entire life, what can one say.” The beauty of democracy is that one can align with any party any time, said Singh.  He said he welcomes if any party wants to join the political bandwagon but added that he was against any party whose main intent is to disturb the state's peace. On July 7, a faction of dissident Akali leaders had “elected” Dhindsa as SAD president in Ludhiana, a move which was dubbed “illegal and fraud” by the party.

Currently, Sukhbir Singh Badal is the party president. At that time, Akali Dal's senior leader Daljeet Singh Cheema accused the expelled party leader of acting at the behest of the Congress.

Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa, along with his son and former state Finance Minister Parminder Singh Dhindsa, was expelled from the SAD in February this year for “anti-party” activities.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)