AAP has no poll plank, it will be wiped out in 2027: Sukhpal Khaira

You lost Sangrur, what went wrong?

There are three reasons. First, of the nine assembly segments in Sangrur, five were without halqa in-charges. Dalvir Goldy ditched the party, and Vijay Inder Singla was nominated from Anandpur Sahib as a Congress candidate. In all, there was a shortage of responsible manpower in five assembly constituencies due to the absence of halqa in-charges. Number two, there was a cascading effect of Khadoor Sahib and Faridkot, and Sikh votes got split between Simranjit Singh Mann of SAD (Amritsar) and me. The third factor is the BJP got Hindu votes over the Ram temple issue. In normal circumstances, for instance, in the by-election, the BJP got 65,000 votes, but this time, it got 1.25 lakh Hindu votes, which otherwise are Congress’s votes. Fourthly, I fought this election single-handedly as everyone in the party was preoccupied with their respective areas.

You have been raising concerns over non-Punjabis settling in Punjab and drawing flak from your opponents while your party colleagues distanced themselves from your remarks, what do you think?

It’s a very relevant issue and there is nothing wrong with that. Vested interests portray that demand wrongly at times. [As far as my party colleagues are concerned] I can only say they failed to understand the issue. If they think they would lose the non-Punjabi vote [by raising the demand], don’t they require the votes of Sikhs and Punjabis? Do Sikhs and Punjabis have more votes or non-Punjabis? Moreover, the changing demographic is the core issue, thus sooner or later, Punjab will have to adopt it. I am not the only one who is saying this. Himachal Pradesh has made an Act, Uttarakhand has also made an Act, and several other states, too. What I am saying is that there should be a law in Punjab. Everybody is welcome. You fulfil the conditions and then settle down.

What according to you helped Amritpal Singh and Sarabjeet Singh Khalsa win elections?

There is a gross vacuum in Sikh politics as people are disenchanted with Sikh leaders. People are not satisfied with the performance of leaders like Sukhbir Badal, who calls the shots in the Akali Dal. So, people are choosing the side wherever they see even a little hope. Punjab is the only state in the country where people gather voluntarily on various issues — be sacrilege of the Guru Granth Sahib, where two lakh people gathered voluntarily or supporting Bhana Sidhu, where 30,000 to 40,000 people gathered. People are restless and very upset with the discriminatory system against Punjab. They let all this frustration come out in Khadoor Sahib. Also, there was little sympathy too, since he (Amritpal) was in jail. This also affected Faridkot.

Amritpal’s detention under the NSA has been extended by a year, what’s your opinion?

The DC (in his capacity as District Magistrate) invoked the NSA [against Amritpal]. Bhagwant Mann should have at least respected the mandate of the people. He (Amritpal) won by a margin of two lakh votes. The draconian law should have been withdrawn. Moreover, Punjab had faced the NSA and the TADA a lot in the past. I think Bhagwant Mann does not have much understanding about this. Such black laws should not be used in this era given what Punjab faced in the past. They (NSA detenues) should be released. And if there is any case against him, try them in Punjab, keep them in Punjab’s jail.

You said the BJP got Hindu votes in Sangrur. Also, BJP’s overall vote share in Punjab has increased, your comments?

The BJP whipped up the Ram temple sentiment throughout the country and that had an impact in Punjab too. This polarised votes in Punjab. When farmer organisations lodged very strong protests, literally getting physical, against BJP candidates, the votes got consolidated in favour of the BJP as a reaction to their protests. Farmer organisations should have educated people about the wrong policies of the BJP government rather than opposing them the way they did.

Punjab had a four-cornered contest, how do you see the future political landscape of the state?

The Akali Dal has been wiped out, paving the path for a new leadership. They managed to win one seat of Bathinda which is their pocket borough. There will be a realignment in Punjab politics in a year or so; wait and see who fills the space. AAP saw a decline, losing 15 per cent votes and their (leads in assembly) seats dropped from 92 to 33. So, for them, bubbles are bursting. It has trampled its ideology on the issues of VIP culture, Swaraj model and Jan Lokpal. Had Congress given a tough fight, AAP would not have won even three seats. The 2027 [Punjab Vidhan Sabha] elections will be a triangular contest among the Congress, the newly positioned Akali Dal and the BJP. You will see AAP getting marginalised. The Congress has its old secular plank, the Akali Dal has the panthic plank, and the BJP has the right-wing plank, but they (AAP) don’t have any plank. [Giving] jobs is not a plank. They will yield the space they have temporarily occupied. A lot of space, they have yielded already, and lost 15 per cent in just two years!

The Punjab government launched a massive crackdown on the drugs mafia-police nexus, what do you think?

The roots of drugs are deeply rooted in Punjab spanning over decades. It will take many decades to eradicate drugs from Punjab because drugs are not an on-off phenomenon. The drug menace has increased and become a monster. It is associated with the economy of Punjab, the agrarian economy of the Punjab and unemployment. If these issues are not addressed, you cannot wipe away drugs with the police force. Jails are full of accused booked under the NDPS Act, but drugs did not end. You will have to get to the root causes to resolve the drug problem. [Former Punjab CM Captain] Amarinder Singh and Arvind Kejriwal made tall claims to end the drugs. Lofty statements would not help. Any sensible leader cannot set a time frame to wipe out drugs.