Harsimrat Badal's Cryptic Remark Fuels Akali Dal-BJP Reconciliation Buzz

The debate over a possible SAD-BJP re-alliance in Punjab has gained fresh momentum after Shiromani Akali Dal leader and Bathinda MP Harsimrat Kaur Badal made a reference to a possible future "agreement" with Delhi, without naming the BJP.

Speaking at a rally in Longowal to mark the 41st death anniversary of Sant Harchand Singh Longowal, Harsimrat first appeared to signal that she was deliberately holding back from spelling out what could be coming. "It is not my duty to speak, so I am holding my tongue. You will come to know on your own," she said.

She then went on to emphasise the importance of political arrangements with the Centre, recalling the development and progress Punjab had received through such agreements in the past. "May Guru Sahib bless us and may the people give us strength. There should be such agreements through which development and progress works are carried out from Delhi, as used to happen earlier. Once again, the foundation of development and progress should be laid in Punjab, so that it benefits the people and Punjab," Harsimrat said.

The two remarks, coming together at one of the SAD's major political gatherings, have assumed significance amid renewed speculation over whether the two former allies could find common ground ahead of the 2027 Punjab Assembly elections, six years after Harsimrat quit as a Union minister and the SAD walked out of the NDA over the three farm laws that were eventually withdrawn following a year-long protest by farmers. The latest buzz of a possible reconciliation began after SAD chief and Harsimrat's husband Sukhbir Singh Badal met Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The party said the meeting was about "issues concerning Punjab".

The SAD and BJP had shared power and fought elections together for decades before their relationship collapsed in 2020. Subsequently, the BJP began building an independent organisational structure in Punjab. Since then, both parties have contested elections separately, making the question of a possible reunion far more complicated than simply reviving their old alliance. They have managed little success when fighting on their own, though. And Punjab's political circumstances have changed as well.

The SAD is attempting to regain lost ground among its traditional rural and Sikh constituency, while the BJP is seeking to expand beyond its traditional urban support base. A renewed understanding could potentially give both parties complementary strengths, allowing the BJP greater access to rural Punjab and giving the SAD a stronger national political partnership.

At the same time, an alliance would carry considerable challenges. The farm law episode remains a defining point in the relationship, while the BJP's independent expansion in Punjab means it may not be willing to return to the old seat-sharing arrangement. For the SAD, any alliance would also have to be carefully positioned so that it does not alienate its traditional support base or undermine its claim of representing Punjab's interests.

That makes Harsimrat's choice of words particularly important. She did not announce an alliance, did not name the BJP and did not commit the SAD to any arrangement. But she also did not close the door. Her reference to "agreements" with Delhi and her pointed assurance that people would "come to know on their own" could therefore be read as a deliberate signal that political conversations may be underway or, at the very least, that the possibility of a rapprochement is being kept alive.

With Punjab's political battle for 2027 already beginning to take shape, the next question will be whether Harsimrat's Longowal remarks remain an isolated political hint or become the first public indication of a larger recalibration between the SAD and BJP.