Brar quits AAP, joins saffron party

Tribune News Service

Jalandhar, May 21

As Jagbir Brar started his new political innings quitting the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) where he was its state secretary, he started his brush with the fifth political party since the start of his electoral career in 2007. He had then quit his job as the Block Development and Panchayat Officer in Muktsar and became Akali Dal MLA from the Jalandhar Cantonment seat.

Brar was inducted into the saffron party by its national secretary Tarun Chugh in New Delhi on Tuesday. He had earned much popularity in 2007 as like his cousin Manpreet Badal, he used to drive his own car and avoided security cover. As Manpreet Badal, who was then Finance Minister of Punjab, left the party to float his new outfit People’s Party of Punjab (PPP), Brar too was quick to quit and join him.

But the cousins could not go along together for a long time. Seeing that the PPP would not be able to make any major impact in 2012, he quit the party to join the Congress and contest again from Jalandhar Cantonment, but lost to then Akali Dal’s Pargat Singh. However, as the PPP merged into the Congress, the cousins came along once again. In 2017, just as Brar was sure of getting Congress ticket from Cantonment again, his plans were spoiled by Pargat Singh, who too joined the Congress

along with cricketer Navjot Sidhu on the condition that Pargat would get the Cantonment ticket. Brar had to then move to Nakodar from where he emerged third.

As Pargat became Congress MLA from Cantonment, Brar began to feel getting dislodged and hence quit the party to rejoin SAD ahead of 2022 polls. He again got trounced by Pargat.

Ahead of 2023 bypoll, Brar shifted to fourth party which was the ruling AAP in the state. He

was hopeful of being appointed as its halqa in-charge from Cantonment, but the party instead handed the post to Rajwinder Thiara. Brar was last month appointed as the state secretary, but he was not happy.

As Brar joined the BJP today, he said: “The state secretary’s post was just in name. There was no independence to work. There was so much interference. I had shared my mind with Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, but he too ignored my concerns. Whenever I tried to call up Punjab in-charge and national general secretary Sandeep Pathak, he would not pick my phone. So, I chose to quit them and make a fresh beginning.”

His political opponents, including Pargat Singh, have been taking jibes on him calling him the biggest party hopper of Punjab having surpassed all records. “Brar has lost all credibility among voters,” he hit out.

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