Punjab Elections 2027: BJP names Raghav Chadha, Harbhajan Singh to manifesto panel ahead of polls

New Delhi: The Bharatiya Janata Party has begun preparations for the 2027 Punjab Assembly elections by setting up two committees to work on its manifesto and prepare allegations against the ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government.

Rajya Sabha MPs Raghav Chadha and Harbhajan Singh, who joined the BJP after leaving the AAP in April, have been included in the party’s 13-member manifesto committee. The panel will prepare the BJP’s electoral roadmap and outline its promises for Punjab.

Former Rajya Sabha MP Avinash Rai Khanna will head the manifesto committee while former Punjab BJP president Sunil Jakhar has been appointed chairman of the 14-member chargesheet committee. The latter will prepare a document highlighting the BJP’s allegations against the AAP government.

The committees were announced by Punjab BJP president Kewal Singh Dhillon. He said more committees would be formed in the coming days. The manifesto panel also includes Manpreet Singh Badal, Ashwani Sharma, Manoranjan Kalia, Som Parkash, Rana Gurmeet Singh Sodhi, Ashwani Sekhri, Satnam Singh Sandhu, Rajinder Gupta, Parampal Kaur and advocate HS Phoolka.

The chargesheet committee includes Vikramjit Singh Sahney, Ashok Mittal, Sandeep Pathak, Iqbal Singh Lalpura, Vijay Sampla, Shwait Malik, Preneet Kaur, Ravneet Singh Bittu, Dinesh Babbu, Sushil Rinku, Geja Ram, SS Channy and Jagmeet Singh Brar.

BJP and Akali Dal hold seat-sharing discussions

The committee announcements come as the BJP and Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) explore the possibility of joining hands for the 2027 elections, PTI reported.

Sources in both parties told PTI that a formal announcement could come later this month after discussions on seat-sharing are completed. Union Minister CR Patil, the BJP’s Punjab election in-charge, is expected to meet state leaders in Chandigarh on November 17.

The two parties ended their 24-year alliance in September 2020 over the three farm laws, which were later repealed. Before the split, the SAD contested 94 seats and the BJP 23 under their seat-sharing arrangement.

Amit Shah’s prediction fuels alliance speculation

Union Home Minister Amit Shah has also added to speculation about a possible reunion. He predicted last month that the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) would form the government in Punjab in 2027. He repeated the claim during a visit to Chandigarh on November 1.

SAD president Sukhbir Singh Badal, when asked about a possible alliance on November 2, said, “You will come to know in a few days as to what will happen.”

He also said the party was open to alliances with parties that accepted its ideology while ruling out an understanding with the Congress and AAP.

The BJP, meanwhile, has maintained that it is preparing to contest all 117 Assembly seats. In the 2022 elections, when the two former allies fought separately, the SAD won three seats and the BJP secured two.