Akali Dal-BJP will stay strong: Badal

Chandigarh: Despite differences among leaders at the state-level, Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal on Sunday said the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) and BJP alliance will continue.

Badal, the chief patron of the Akali Dal, denied that the ruling Akali Dal-Bhratiya Janata Party combine faced any threat.

"The alliance with the BJP has been strong in the past, is strong now and will remain so in future," Badal said in a 'Meet-the-Press' programme at the Chandigarh Press Club here.

He was replying to a question on the grievances publicly aired by some BJP leaders, including ministers in his own government, against the Akali Dal's style of functioning.

The SAD-BJP alliance, which has been in power in Punjab since 2007, was re-elected in March 2012. Both parties have been together for over three decades in the state.

Some BJP ministers, including Industries Minister Madan Mohan Mittal and Local Bodies Minister Anil Joshi, have in recent weeks have expressed their differences with the Akali leadership.

Other BJP leaders and party legislators have also spoken out against the Akali Dal.

Punjab is expected to witness elections for the 117-member assembly in 2017.

(IANS)