Raja Warring brushes aside Sukhbir Badal’s Gidderbaha challenge

Punjab Congress chief Amrinder Singh Raja Warring on Tuesday dismissed SAD chief Sukhbir Badal’s announcement of contesting the Assembly poll from Gidderbaha as insignificant, saying it was a “mere attempt to boost SAD workers’ morale” ahead of rural bodies’polls.

The Gidderbaha seat, a former SAD stronghold, was represented by Warring thrice from 2012 to the 2024 Lok Sabha poll, in which he was elected as the Ludhiana MP. His wife Amrita Warring had contested the bypoll from here last year but lost to ruling AAP first-timer Hardeep Singh Dimpy Dhillon, a former SAD leader. Striking an emotion chord, Sukhbir on Monday said the constituency “belonged” to his late father and former CM Parkash Singh Badal, who represented the seat five times in the past.

Later, Badal moved to Lambi. His nephew Manpreet Singh Badal, now a BJP leader, won from here four times in a row in 1995, 1997, 2002 and 2007 as a SAD nominee. Reacting to the announcement, Warring claimed that he had last year dared Sukhbir to contest the Gidderbaha bypoll.

“He, however, did not even field his party candidate then, only to support AAP candidate Dimpy Dhillon. Sukhbir just wants to boost the morale of his party workers in the upcoming elections, nothing else,” Warring added.

Asked whether the Assembly contest could turn into a fight between Sukhbir Badal and his cousin Manpreet Badal, Warring said, “I have long been saying that both Badal brothers are united. They will not contest against each other.” “As proof, even the SAD withdrew its official statement regarding Sukhbir to contest the Assembly election last evening,” he claimed.

Meanwhile, Dimpy, who was a confidant of Sukhbir before he joined AAP last year, claimed that Sukhbir had to make announcement out of compulsion as the party fielded candidates in the rural polls after promising that Sukhbir would contest from here.

“I feel proud that a mentor has come to contest against his protege as the SAD failed to find my replacement,” he added.