The ruling Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) on Monday kicked off its election campaign for Patiala bypoll. The SAD, only a day before, had announced social worker Bhagwan Dass Juneja as its candidate for bypoll against four-time Patiala MP and former Union Minister Preneet Kaur of the Congress. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has fielded a former Akali leader Harjeet Singh Adaltiwala as its candidate from Patiala.
The SAD held a meeting at party head office under the leadership of party patron and Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal and party president and Deputy CM Sukhbir Badal and was attended by senior party leaders from Patiala, Fatehgarh Sahib, Mohali, Ropar, ludhiana, Nawanshahr, Jalandhar, Hoshiarpur and Kapurthala.
During the meeting, the party pledged to ensure historic victory of party candidate and philanthropist Bhagwan Dass Juneja in the Patiala bypoll. Sukhbir also assigned the campaign responsibilities to the party leaders and workers, and chalked out plans to reach each and every voter. Senior Badal, on the other hand, suggested a comprehensive action plan to create awareness among voters about pro-people policies of the SAD–BJP Government.