Chandigarh: The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), which went solo in the Lok Sabha elections for the first time since 1996, won only one out of the 13 Parliamentary constituencies in Punjab.
Harsimrat Kaur Badal, the wife of SAD chief Sukhbir Singh Badal, retained the Bathinda Parliamentary constituency, by a margin of 49,656 votes over her nearest rival and AAP candidate Gurmeet Singh Khuddian. The Bathinda Parliamentary constituency is considered as a stronghold of the SDA with Harsimrat winning this seat since 2009. Seen as a litmus test of the SAD, the party did not perform up to the mark as its candidates were placed in third or fourth position in a majority of the constituencies.
Before parting ways with the BJP in 2020 over the now-repealed farm laws, the SAD and the BJP used to contest elections in alliance. The 2024 elections came as one of the toughest challenges for Badal as his 103-year-old outfit was seeking to gain its lost political ground in the state. Badal was also steering the party without his father, Akali stalwart and five-time chief minister Parkash Singh Badal who died last year. During poll campaigning, Sukhbir called the SAD the only regional outfit fighting to safeguard the interests of Punjab and also the voice of “qaum” (community). he former deputy chief minister relied on development works carried out during the erstwhile Akali regime, such as building of road network, setting up of thermal plants, etc.