Former Jalandhar Cantonment MLA Jagbir Brar quits Congress, joins SAD

Deepkamal Kaur

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Tribune News Service

Jalandhar, August 16

Former Jalandhar Cantonment MLA and Punjab Water Resources Management and Development Corporation Chairman Jagbir Brar on Monday left Congress to rejoin the Shiromani Akali Dal as Sukhbir Badal visited him at his place in Model Town here.

A former Block Development Officer, Brar had got elected as the SAD MLA in 2007 but quit the party in 2011 to join People’s Party of Punjab floated by his relative and Finance Minister Manpreet Badal. Later, he quit PPP to join the Congress and contested as the party candidate in 2012, losing to Pargat Singh, who was then the SAD candidate. In 2017, as Pargat joined the Congress on the condition of getting ticket from Cantt seat, Brar was forced to move to Nakodar where he remained unsuccessful.

After the recent outbursts of Pargat against CM Capt Amarinder Singh, Brar was hopeful of returning to the Cantt seat. But things did not turn the way he had anticipated and hence he chose to rejoin the Akali Dal to get to contest from the Cantt seat. The fact that the SAD has entered into an alliance with the BSP, which has a good vote bank in the area, is expected to give a boost to the party from this seat.

Meanwhile, on the day Brar joined the SAD fold, PPCC chief Navjot Sidhu announced the appointment of Pargat Singh as general secretary (organisation) of the party.

The re-joining of Brar in SAD has sent signals that Akali ex-MLA Sarabjeet Makkar, who had contested from the seat in 2017, could be dislodged from here. He has reportedly planned his show of strength on Monday and invited Sukhbir Badal to attend it.