SAD's performance was better in Delhi polls: CM Badal

Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal today claimed that Shiromani Akali Dal's (SAD) performance in Delhi polls has shown improvement over the previous elections in the capital, although AAP gained at the expense of Congress party's votes.
"SAD performance in the just concluded assembly elections in Delhi had shown an improvement over the previous elections, in terms of both vote-share and the number of votes polled by the party's candidates," Badal claimed in a statement issued here.
"The sole reason for this increase was the transfer of all Congress votes to the AAP, disturbing poll arithmetic in other constituencies, including those contested by the SAD, and giving AAP a huge jump at the expense of the Congress," Badal said.

"The AAP is a beneficiary of the decimation of the Congress party...," he said.
"But of course we do not mean to undermine the victory of the AAP. We extend whole-hearted congratulations and best wishes to the AAP and its architect Arvind Kejriwal for their impressive showing. We accept the verdict of the people of Delhi in all humility," he said.
However, the Chief Minister said that he and his party were grateful to Delhi's voters that even in this wave, SAD's core vote bank stayed intact and actually registered an improvement over performance in the last elections.

The Chief Minister said that the party's high command would soon meet to study the details and meaning of the verdict, and consider ways to further improving the party's bonds with the people.

SAD had fielded four candidates in Delhi polls.
Among them were, Manjinder Singh Sirsa from Rajouri Garden seat who contested polls on SAD symbol while three others including Jatinder Pal Shanty (Shahdara), Harmeet Singh Kalka (Kalkaji) and Avtar Singh Hit (Hari Nagar) contested on BJP symbol. All of them lost in Delhi elections.