Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) chief Sukhbir Singh Badal on Saturday announced the party's support for the Centre's proposal for a uniform 50 per cent increase in Lok Sabha and Assembly seats across states, along with immediate implementation of the Women's Reservation Bill. The announcement came a day after Badal met Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Parliament, adding to speculation over a possible revival of the SAD-BJP alliance ahead of the Punjab elections.

Badal said the SAD had discussed key issues before Parliament at a meeting of its senior leaders in Chandigarh. He said the party wanted the Women's Reservation Bill to be implemented immediately and supported a delimitation exercise that would ensure fair and equitable representation for all states. The SAD chief specifically backed the Centre's proposal for a uniform 50 per cent increase in seats across states.

The position marks a shift from the party's earlier stand on delimitation. When the Centre first introduced the Delimitation Bill in Parliament in April, the SAD opposed it and voted against the legislation alongside opposition parties. The party had then argued that the proposed exercise could be discriminatory towards Punjab because the state was expected to receive only a marginal increase in seats while neighbouring states could gain more representation.

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The latest announcement has come against the backdrop of renewed speculation about an electoral understanding between the SAD and BJP. The two parties had maintained an alliance for nearly 25 years before the relationship broke down in 2020 over the three farm laws. The SAD subsequently withdrew from the National Democratic Alliance, and the two parties contested the 2022 Punjab Assembly election and 2024 Lok Sabha election separately.

The BJP won no Lok Sabha seats in Punjab in the 2024 general election, while the SAD secured one seat. According to sources cited in the report, the SAD, Punjab BJP unit and RSS are in favour of reviving the alliance, while some Congress leaders who later joined the BJP also support the move. The final decision, however, rests with the BJP's central leadership.

Sources also indicated that the BJP could seek a more balanced arrangement if the alliance is revived, unlike the previous partnership in which the BJP was the junior partner. Akali leaders, meanwhile, have indicated that issues such as seat-sharing can be addressed later, with the immediate focus on improving Punjab's political and governance situation. Badal's meeting with Modi and the SAD's changed position on delimitation have therefore intensified attention on the possibility of the two parties coming together again.

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