Political equations in Punjab are shifting after SAD chief Sukhbir Singh Badal’s brief meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the party’s sudden support for the Centre’s delimitation proposal. With both BJP and SAD publicly insisting they will contest separately, the timing of Badal’s Delhi visit and his U-turn on key legislation has intensified speculation of a pre-2027 alliance revival.
POLITICAL TEMPERATURE in Punjab has started rising ahead of the 2027 assembly elections after Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) President Sukhbir Singh Badal met Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday, August 7, 2026. The brief meeting between the two former allies has triggered fresh speculation about a possible SAD-BJP reunion, nearly six years after the Akali Dal had left the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) over the contentious farm laws. The two parties had a history of a strong alliance in Punjab, jointly governing for three terms.
While neither side has officially confirmed whether any alliance talks took place, the timing of the meeting and the developments that followed have given enough fuel to the fire.
Sukhbir Badal met PM Modi at the Prime Minister’s office in the Parliament House complex on August 7, 2026. While The Indian Express reported that the meeting lasted for 10 minutes, other media reports suggest a slightly longer duration of around 20 minutes, which was enough to cause political waves ahead of Punjab assembly elections 2027.
According to media sources, Badal discussed issues related to Punjab, including the law-and-order situation and alleged corruption in welfare schemes under the ruling Aam Aadmi Party government. Other sources also reported that the alliance discussion was on the agenda. They further stated that if it is indeed revived, the announcement of the alliance will be done in September 2026. However, after meeting the Prime Minister, Badal did not reveal details about the conversation and only said that he had met Modi to discuss issues concerning Punjab.
The SAD too maintained silence on the meeting. Party leader Daljit Singh Cheema said that the two leaders had met the PM, refusing to give details about any possible alliance. Even after the meeting on Friday, August 7, 2026, both SAD and BJP have been maintaining that they are preparing to fight the 2027 Punjab elections separately. The BJP has repeatedly said it intends to contest all 117 Assembly seats on its own, while the SAD has also been preparing its organisation across the state.
Responding to the discourse around the meeting, Punjab BJP president Kewal Singh Dhillon said, “The PM is for everyone; anybody can meet him.” He further reiterated that the BJP was preparing to contest all 117 seats on its own and hinted at a major induction of leaders into the party soon. Party spokesperson RP Singh echoed the same line in Delhi, stating that a meeting with the Prime Minister did not automatically signal a compromise or alliance.
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The alliance speculation grew stronger the day after Badal’s meeting with Modi. On Saturday, August 8, Sukhbir Badal met senior SAD leaders in Chandigarh, where the party demanded immediate implementation of the Women’s Reservation Bill and supported the Centre’s proposal for a uniform 50 per cent increase in the number of seats for all states as part of the delimitation process.
This is a significant change in stance as the SAD had earlier opposed population-based delimitation, arguing that it could disadvantage states such as Punjab. However, the party now states that after deliberations it has decided to support the Centre’s proposal for a uniform expansion of seats while demanding a “fair and equitable” delimitation.
Badal also said that women’s reservation and delimitation should be implemented immediately. The timing of this shift has attracted attention because it came immediately after his meeting with PM Modi. However, the SAD has not officially said whether the bill was discussed in the meeting or not.
The BJP and SAD were once a strong and prominent alliance in Punjab. It lasted for 23 years and the two parties jointly formed governments after winning the 1997, 2007, and 2012 elections. Their relationship finally collapsed in 2020 during the farmers’ agitation against the Centre’s farm laws. The SAD subsequently left the NDA and Harsimrat Kaur Badal, wife of Sukhbir Singh Badal, resigned from the cabinet.
Both parties suffered a major setback in the 2022 Assembly elections after the breakup. While the SAD won only 3 seats in the state, BJP managed only 2 seats. The rough patch continued in 2024 Lok Sabha elections where the two parties reportedly had a disagreement over seat breakup in the state. As a result, Shiromani Akali Dal only won 1 out 13 seats, while BJP failed to open its account in the northern state.
According to The Tribune, leaders within the two parties believe the current political situation could favour an alliance, particularly amid internal challenges and disagreement among factions in Punjab’s opposition camp.
Political experts maintain that BJP has a strong vote bank in urban areas but an equally weaker one among rural farmers. Akali Dal’s appeal in the rural areas could be the boost that BJP needs to regain its momentum in the state, making this recent development an interesting turn ahead of the assembly elections in 2027.
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