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Eye on 2027 Punjab polls, BJP turns a new leaf, doubles down on flood relief

Shivraj Chouhan's visit to flood-hit Punjab as well as state BJP's relief efforts mark a sharp contrast from 2023 flood, when the Centre was accused of “ignoring” the state

On September 4, Union Minister for Agriculture Shivraj Singh Chouhan visited a flood-affected area in Punjab. (@ChouhanShivraj/X)

Written by: Raakhi Jagga

5 min readLudhianaSep 7, 2025 08:40 AM IST First published on: Sep 7, 2025 at 08:00 AM IST

Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan’s visit to flood-hit Punjab Thursday has highlighted a more proactive approach by the BJP towards the calamity. This marked a sharp contrast from 2023, when no Union minister visited the state even though 21 of its 23 districts had been submerged then due to floods.

Chouhan visited several villages in Amritsar, Gurdaspur and Kapurthala, and made it clear that he arrived in the state on Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s instructions. “I have been sent by the Prime Minister to take stock of the floods in Punjab. We are standing tall with Punjab,” he said, adding that the deluge has destroyed the current crops and threatened the next season’s cultivation.

“I have not come here as a minister, but as a servant of Punjab’s farmers,” Chouhan said, terming the situation “dreadful”.

In 2023, floods triggered by heavy rainfall, excess dam releases and cloudbursts in Himachal devastated Punjab, but no Union minister toured the state. At the time, the ruling AAP leaders had complained about the alleged lack of flood relief efforts by the BJP-ruled Centre in the state.

Also read | As Centre says ‘illegal sand mining’ behind Punjab floods, state hits back: ‘Understand responsibility instead of blaming us’

The AAP camp later also charged that while Bihar was allocated Rs 11,500 crore as flood relief in the 2024–25 Union Budget, Punjab barely

received anything despite official records pegging its losses at over Rs 1,500 crore and farmland damages across 2.21 lakh hectares. At that time, however, the Centre released Rs 218 crore to Punjab from the national disaster relief fund, with the state compensating farmers at Rs 6,800 per acre.

This year, however, BJP leaders in Punjab have projected themselves as more visible and hands-on amid the devastating floods.

On Thursday, state BJP president Sunil Jakhar drove a tractor himself, ferrying Chouhan to affected villages where normal passage was cut off by flood waters. Union Minister of State Ravneet Singh Bittu drove another tractor to ferry Chouhan during his visit.

Jakhar, notably, was the first Punjab leader to write to PM Modi on August 30 seeking a flood relief package, ahead of similar appeals made by Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, Leader of Opposition (LoP) in the state Assembly and Congress leader Partap Singh Bajwa, and SAD chief Sukhbir Singh Badal.

State BJP leaders were also meanwhile seen taking part in relief efforts in several belts. In Jalandhar, BJP national general secretary Tarun Chugh carried ration bags on his shoulders while loading relief material on a truck.

Anita Som Parkash, BJP leader and wife of former Union MoS Som Parkash, was seen distributing ration kits in Phagwara. “We need to focus on relief work at this moment and must work for the welfare of flood victims,” she said.

In Ludhiana, BJP spokesperson Pritpal Singh Baliawal camped at the Sasurali embankment in Sahnewal for over two weeks, working with volunteers to strengthen weak stretches on a Sutlej river embankment. “The administration only got active when the situation deteriorated. But I am here 24×7 for the people,” he claimed.

In Mohali, state BJP media head Vineet Joshi joined local residents to plug a bund breach near Nayagaon on September 3, when a river damaged a road, in an effort to prevent flooding of a part of the town.

Also read | Explained: Why Punjab keeps flooding

Some other BJP leaders, too, undertook flood relief. Rana Gurmeet Singh Sodhi and his son Heera in Ferozepur monitored sensitive embankment points along Sutlej. In Fatehgarh Sahib, Gurdarshan Singh dispatched truckloads of relief material, while in Patiala, Mahila Morcha chief Jai Inder Kaur waded through floodwaters in Patran Thursday.

Haryana CM Nayab Singh Saini also announced Rs 5 crore for Punjab flood assistance this week, offering more help if necessary. No such aid had come from the BJP-led Haryana government in 2023.

BJP bid to reclaim ground

Currently, the BJP has only two MLAs in the Punjab Assembly. The party could not win a single Lok Sabha seat from the state in the 2024 polls even as it got 18.5% vote share. After facing a blowback in the wake of farmers’ agitation during 2020-21, the party has tried to reframe its narrative in the state. It has intensified these efforts in order to regain lost ground ahead of the 2027 Punjab Assembly polls.

For several months earlier this year, BJP workers had been trying to connect with villagers through welfare outreach camps under the “BJP de Sewadaar Aa Gaye Ne Tuhade Dwar” programme showcasing various central schemes.

Facing heat from the administration later, Jakhar suspended these camps on August 27, accusing the AAP government of blocking them over “data theft” allegations. He has now asked party workers to prioritise flood relief work across all the districts.