Former Congress MLA from Jalalabad Raminder Singh Awla has joined the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), triggering fresh political discussion in Punjab’s Ferozepur belt and bringing his past differences over candidate selection within the Congress back into focus.
Awla formally joined the Akali Dal in Chandigarh in the presence of party president Sukhbir Singh Badal. Senior SAD leader and party vice-president Parmbans Singh Bunty Romana was also present.
Awla formally joined the Akali Dal in Chandigarh in the presence of party president Sukhbir Singh Badal. Senior SAD leader and party vice-president Parmbans Singh Bunty Romana was also present. Welcoming Awla, Sukhbir Badal took to X and described him as a senior Congress leader and former MLA from Jalalabad. He highlighted the constituency’s association with the Akali Dal, saying its people had given him the opportunity to serve them three times. Badal also claimed that extensive development work had been undertaken in Jalalabad during Akali governments. Awla’s induction is significant for the Akali Dal as it seeks to strengthen its political presence in the Ferozepur region, where the party has faced competition from both the Congress and other political forces.
On August 4, Amarinder Singh Raja Warring, then Punjab Congress president, had questioned the practice of senior leaders seeking tickets for both themselves and their sons.
Addressing a public meeting in Ferozepur, Warring said the party would not allot two tickets to members of the same family and questioned whether the Congress was being run like a family estate.
Awla’s exit from the Congress comes against the backdrop of an earlier controversy over the distribution of election tickets and allegations of political dynasticism within the party.
