Akali Dal permanent ally of BJP, NDA, says Sukhbir Badal

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BJP chief Amit Shah meets Akali Dal chief, a day after he met Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray in Mumbai.

Bharatiya Janata Party president Amit Shah on Thursday met top leaders of the Shiromani Akali Dal to deliberate upon the strategy for the 2019 general elections.

Mr. Shah, who was in Chandigarh for the BJP’s Sampark for Samarthan campaign, held a meeting with veteran Alaki Dal leader Parkash Singh Badal and its president Sukhbir Singh Badal.

“It was decided at the meeting that a six-member committee would be constituted in the next few days. The committee will have members from both parties and will chalk out a plan on how to approach the general elections to ensure victory,” senior Akali leader Daljeet Cheema told The Hindu.

“Presidents of both the parties would formally announce the details pertaining to the election plan in coming days,” he added.

Ruling out any conflict between the Akali Dal and BJP, Sukhbir Badal told reporters that “Akali Dal is a permanent ally of the BJP and NDA.”

Asking all NDA allies to shun their differences and stay together ahead of the 2019 elections, Mr. Badal said: “There’s no conflict between the BJP and us. I want to appeal to all alliance partners of the NDA to forget their differences and come together ahead of the parliamentary elections.”