Turncoats will hardly dent SAD's winnability: Badal

In the wake of two SAD MLAs joining the Congress today, Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal said defection from his party will not make a dent on its winnability in the Assembly polls.
"SAD leaders who have changed sides by joining the Congress expecting electoral prospects in the forthcoming assembly polls will hardly make any dent to our party's winnability," Badal told reporters here after MLAs Mahesh Inder Singh and Rajwinder Kaur Bhagike joined the Congress.
Earlier, SAD MLA Sarwan Singh Phillaur had switched to the opposition party after being denied a ticket.
"Such leaders were least sincere to their party. Anyone who has been denied a party ticket, waste no time in shifting your loyalty to other parties," Badal said taking a jibe at leaders who left SAD.

"These turncoats shall be politically doomed forever," he said, asking Punjab Congress chief Amarinder Singh not to "befool" people by making "false promises to capture power".
"Anyone siding with Congress will be acknowledging the atrocities unleashed on Punjabis, especially on Sikhs, in way of attacks on Harmandir Sahib and Takhat Sri Akal Takhat Sahib at behest of the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi," he said.

"Injustice and tyranny perpetrated by Congress still echoes in the tormented psyche of Sikhs particularly victims of the 1984 riots, who are yet to get justice," Badal said.
Accusing Congress of betraying Punjab to "satiate its lust for power", he alleged Amarinder was the "prime conspirator" of the Sutlej-Yamuna-Link (SYL) canal along with his party's high command and Gandhi, who performed its ground breaking ceremony at Kapoori in 1982.

"SAD has opposed the canal from day-one. I reiterate we don't have a single drop of water to share and we did what was within jurisdiction and legal framework. Land acquired for SYL was de-notified and returned to the original owners and their descendants," he said.
Addressing a gathering at his sang at darshan, Badal cautioned people to be beware of "dubious moves" of the Congress as it was making every last ditch efforts to capture power by "emotionally blackmailing" the mass.
"The Congress is not sincere about Punjab's welfare as its sole objective was to pursue vested interests. Thereby in the last they will dupe and dump the people," Badal alleged.

He said his government has decided to convert the original route, from where Sri Guru Gobind Singh's four Sahibzadas along with his mother Mata Gujri left Sri Anandpur Sahib for Sri Fatehgarh Sahib, where two younger Sahibzadas Baba Zorawar Singh and Baba Fateh Singh attained martyrdom, into 'Safar-e-Shahadat'.
On a demand raised by SAD Chamkaur Sahib Assembly segment candidate Nirmal Singh, he said Morinda sub-tehsil will be upgraded to sub-division and a decision will be taken in the next cabinet.