In Pictures: HS Phoolka joins BJP ahead of 2027 Punjab Assembly polls

Senior Supreme Court advocate and human rights activist Harvinder Singh Phoolka formally joined the Bharatiya Janata Party in Delhi on Wednesday, marking a politically significant development in the party’s Punjab strategy ahead of the 2027 Assembly elections (Source: Photo by ANI)

The induction was announced by Punjab BJP chief Sunil Jakhar, who highlighted Phoolka’s long-standing legal fight for justice for the Sikh community and described his entry as a major endorsement of the party’s outreach efforts (Source: Photo by ANI)

The move is being viewed as part of BJP’s sustained attempt under Prime Minister Narendra Modi to strengthen engagement with Sikh leadership and counter narratives built by political opponents (Source: Photo by ANI)

Phoolka, 70, began his political journey with the Aam Aadmi Party in 2013, quickly emerging as a prominent face in Punjab politics within the party’s state leadership (Source: Photo by ANI)

After an unsuccessful bid in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections from Ludhiana, he secured victory in the 2017 Punjab Assembly elections from Dakha, defeating Manpreet Singh Ayali of the Shiromani Akali Dal (Source: Photo by ANI)

Following his electoral success, Phoolka was appointed Leader of Opposition in the Punjab Assembly, solidifying his position as one of AAP’s most influential leaders in the state (Source: Photo by ANI)

In October 2018, he resigned as MLA and exited AAP, expressing dissatisfaction over delays in justice in sacrilege cases despite the recommendations of the Justice Ranjit Singh Commission under the then Congress government (Source: Photo by ANI)

In December 2024, Phoolka announced his intent to join the Shiromani Akali Dal amid a reorganisation call linked to directives issued by Giani Raghbir Singh, though internal factionalism within the party prevented his formal entry (Source: Photo by ANI)

Despite his shifting political affiliations, Phoolka remained widely respected for leading decades-long legal battles related to the 1984 anti-Sikh riots, representing victims’ families and playing a key role in reopening cases and securing convictions (Source: Photo by ANI)

His joining the BJP comes amid a broader wave of Sikh and Akali-background leaders entering the party, including figures such as Manjinder Singh Sirsa and Harmeet Singh Kalka, reinforcing a calibrated expansion of BJP’s influence among Sikh leadership in both Delhi and Punjab (Source: Photo by ANI)