Congress accuses SAD of bias in taking action against its councillor

Congress councillor and Block Congress (Urban) president, Taranjit Singh Bunty Walia, has accused the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) of colluding with the ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) after issuing a show-cause notice to only one councillor.

Walia stated that during the first meeting of the Phagwara Municipal Corporation on February 1, SAD councillor Jaswinder Kaur supported the Congress mayor. However, the SAD leadership selectively sent a notice only to her and her husband, contractor Baljinder Singh, while ignoring two other Akali councillors who voted in favor of the AAP’s mayor.

Walia pointed out that before the elections, the Akali Dal had an alliance with the BJP and campaigned aggressively against the Bhagwant Mann-led AAP government. However, when the time came to elect the mayor, they sided with the ruling party. “This clearly proves that SAD has no firm stand and is willing to compromise for political gains,” he remarked.

With only three councillors in the 50-member MC House, the Akali Dal was not in a position to field its own mayoral candidate. Their only two options was either to abstain from voting or support one of the two leading parties—Congress or AAP. Walia emphasised that the three Akali councillors acted independently, with one supporting the Congress and two backing AAP. Yet, SAD chose to penalise only the Congress-supporting councillor while sparing those who sided with AAP, indicating a tacit understanding between the two parties.

“The people of Phagwara are witnessing how the Akali Dal is compromising its principles, and how the AAP government is undermining democracy. In the 2027 Punjab Assembly elections, the people will ensure the complete wipe-out of both these parties and bring Congress back to power to restore democratic governance,” Walia asserted.