The differences between the two alliance partners — SAD and BJP — further widened on Tuesday. Making up its mind to boycott the ensuing polls for Qadian Municipal Council in Gurdaspur district, the saffron brigade has alleged its ally of fielding its men as Independents against BJP candidates, and of hooliganism.
On the other hand, the Akali Dal has been accusing its alliance partner of “secretly” joining hands with the Congress party for the civic body polls in Qadian. As per the seat sharing arrangement between the two parties for 15-member Qadian Municipal Council, the SAD has settled on eight seats and the remaining seven wards have been allotted to the BJP.
However, the local BJP unit alleged that the SAD has fielded its candidates as independents on the seven seats from where it is contesting polls, impelling the saffron party to “boycott” the polls.
“Akali Dal has fielded its candidates against our party candidates from those seven wards on which we are contesting. They are affecting our poll prospects, which is not fair. We are contesting polls in alliance and instead of supporting us they are opposing us,” a senior BJP leader, requesting anonymity, told The Pioneer.
Also condemning the Akali Dal for hooliganism, the BJP leader also declared that the party has decided to boycott the municipal polls in Qadian. The relation between the two hit a new low following a violent attack on BJP Minister Anil Joshi’s younger brother, Raja Joshi, allegedly by Akali men in Tarn Taran almost a week ago, where the saffron party has announced to go solo.
The party’s State leadership has maintained that the situation in Tarn Taran is beyond patch up and there was “no point to in contesting municipal polls there together”. For the 23-ward Tarn Taran municipal council, SAD and BJP is facing each other.
Besides Tarn Taran, the party is facing similar situation at several other places were the two allies are in direct contest with each other. Elections to the six Municipal Corporations — Pathankot, Hoshiarpur, Phagwara, Moga, SAS Nagar and Bathinda, three bye-elections in three wards of two Municipal Corporations of Jalandhar, Patiala will be held on February 22, while elections to 122 municipal councils and nagar panchayats would be held on February 25.