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HARISH MANAV TheNewsDose.Com

Chandigarh, The death of Parkash Singh Badal in April 2023 didn’t just mark the passing of Punjab’s five-time Chief Minister—it marked the slow unravelling of the party he built into a formidable Sikh political institution. Two years later, the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) stands divided, its traditional vote bank fragmented, and its authority under unprecedented scrutiny from the very religious institutions that once sustained its influence.

Now, a parallel Shiromani Akali Dal has emerged—claiming the mantle of the “real” Akali Dal, drawing strength not from dynastic succession but from the Akal Takht’s moral sanction. This inside story traces how Punjab’s most powerful regional party slipped into decline, and why its crisis has transformed into a fight for religious as well as political legitimacy.

The Vacuum After Prakash Singh  Badal

Parkash Singh Badal’s towering presence held SAD together for decades, even through turbulent phases like militancy, alliance shifts with the BJP, and the rise of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP). His political capital rested on both electoral acumen and his proximity to Sikh religious institutions.

His demise left a vacuum that Sukhbir Singh Badal—his son and heir—struggled to fill. The 2022 Assembly elections had already decimated SAD, reducing it to a marginal force. Without the elder Badal’s stature, the party’s grassroots networks began to fray.

The Religious Rebuke

The tipping point came in late 2024, when the Akal Takht declared Sukhbir Badal a tankhaiya (culprit), instructing Sikhs not to associate with him until atonement. For a party born out of gurdwara reform movements and dependent on Sikh religious legitimacy, this was a political earthquake.

“Once the Akal Takht withdrew its blessing, Sukhbir’s authority was hollowed out,” says a senior SAD leader, requesting anonymity. “The cadre base felt leaderless.”

The Parallel Akali Dal

Sensing opportunity, a group of rebels led by Prem Singh Chandumajra, Bibi Jagir Kaur, and others convened under the leadership of Giani Harpreet Singh, the former acting jathedar of the Akal Takht. In August 2025, at a delegates’ session in Amritsar, they formally elected him as president of a reconstituted Shiromani Akali Dal, vowing to retain the party’s name and its iconic election symbol, the scales.

The rebels claim to have enrolled over 1.4 million members, set up a Panthic Council headed by Bibi Satwant Kaur, and announced a dual structure—religious oversight fused with political mobilisation.

“This is not a split—it is a reclamation,” Chandumajra told this correspondent. “The Akali Dal of Master Tara Singh and Harchand Singh Longowal was panthic. The Badals turned it into a family firm. We are correcting that history.”

Why the Base is Diluting

Once considered the undisputed voice of Punjab’s Sikhs, SAD’s support has steadily eroded. Multiple factors contributed:

AAP’s rise among farmers and youth voters.

Congress’s residual strength in rural Punjab.

Disillusionment among Sikhs over SAD’s handling of the sacrilege cases (2015) and farm laws (2020–21).

Internal dissent that peaked with the Akal Takht’s censure of Sukhbir.

With the new faction gaining religious legitimacy, the original SAD now risks being reduced to an isolated organisation—described even in its messaging as a “lone hawk surrounded by hunters.”

The Stakes Ahead

The immediate battlefield will be the SGPC elections, where control over Sikh gurdwara management could tilt religious-political balance. A victory for the parallel SAD would cement its claim as the “real” Akali Dal. For Sukhbir, survival means proving political relevance without religious backing—an uphill task in Punjab’s religio-political ecosystem.

“This is the first time in 100 years that two Akali Dals will contest under the same religious banner but different political claims,” observes a Chandigarh-based political analyst. “It is not just a party split. It is a battle for who represents the Sikh panth.”

The Bigger Picture

Beyond the immediate power tussle, the schism reflects a larger question: Can Punjab’s regional politics survive without anchoring itself in Sikh religious legitimacy? With debt mounting, youth disillusioned, and farmers restless, the political field is open—but no single party has emerged as a consensus Sikh voice.

For now, the legacy of Parkash Singh Badal lies contested—between his heirs struggling to retain power and a parallel movement that insists the soul of the Akali Dal must return to its panthic roots.