SAD patriarch Parkash Badal to not accept pension as former-MLA

SAD patriarch Parkash Singh Badal on Thursday announced that he will not accept pension as an ex-MLA.

The five-team chief minister was defeated from his home constituency Lambi in the recently-concluded Punjab assembly polls by AAP's Gurmeet Singh Khuddian.

The nonagenarian asked the Punjab government and the Punjab assembly speaker to divert his pension towards social work, "preferably to help some needy girl students in their education as girls' education has always remained very close to my heart".

"They have a right over me as they have always enriched my life with warmth which only daughters can offer. Their affection has lent me strength even in the most challenging moments of my life," said Badal in a statement here after making a request on the subject.

The former Punjab chief minister said that he had never drawn any pension all his life as he had remained an active legislator from the start.

Badal dismissed as "amusing some propaganda that he had availed of crore worth of pension in the past by virtue of being an 11-time legislator".

He also urged the speaker to inform him of the necessary formalities in this regard, if any, beyond his written request so that he could fulfil those at the earliest.

"I request @PunjabGovtIndia and Hon'ble Speaker that whatever pension accrues to me as ex-MLA may please be used for the interests of the people of Punjab (Lok hitaan vaaste). It should in no case be sent to me. Formal request in writing being sent separately -- Parkash S Badal, former CM," according to an earlier tweet by the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD).

Badal (94) has been MLA for 11 times and won his first election from Malout seat in 1957. He had won the Gidderbaha seat five times -- 1969, 1972, 1977, 1980 and 1985.

Thereafter, he switched over to Lambi and won it five times in a row in 1997, 2002, 2007, 2012 and 2017.