CHANDIGARH: Rebel Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) MLA from Dakha Manpreet Singh Ayali on Wednesday resigned from Shiromani Akali Dal (Punar Surjit), the breakaway Akali faction he was part of after its formation in August last year.Ayali also announced his resignation from 'Panthic unity coordination committee', a panel which he headed as convener. The panel was formed around a month ago to explore the possibility to forge an alliance between SAD (Punar Surjit) and SAD (Waris Punjab De) led by jailed Khadoor Sahib Member of Parliament Amritpal Singh. On May 17, SAD (WPD) members in the panel announced to end the co-ordination with the SAD (Punar Surjit) saying it continued to promote leaders who had “lost the moral right to lead the Panth.” While announcing his resignations from SAD (Punar Surjit), Ayali said those leaders who according to Akal Takht hukamnama had lost the moral right to be associated with Akali Dal, went on to become part of the SAD (Punar Surjit).Without naming anyone, he said that going by the spirit of Akal Takht hukamnama, such leaders should have gone by the spirit of the Akal Takht and should have kept themselves away from the party affairs, for a year or so at least to help the SAD (Punar Surjit) gain traction among the masses.Ayali told the TOI, “Though such leaders claim they had undergone the religious punishment, the sangat (community) was not ready to extend their support.”Ayali was praise for Amritpal Singh and faction led by him saying they aimed to eradicate drugs from the State and led a Khalsa Vaheer, a march to encourage Sikh youths to take Amrit (baptize) and spread awareness against the menace of drugs.Dakha MLA said he would not join any political party being run from Delhi, naming the serving AAP in the State, party in power at the Centre BJP, and the main opposition in Centre and Punjab, the Congress. He also declared that he would not return to Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) either.Ayali, who was among the five-members of the committee formed after the directions of Akal Takht to usher in a revived and united Akali Dal, said that at the outset itself, he was not in favour of forming the splinter group since Akal Takht in its December 2, 2024 hukamnama had directed not to form any splinter groups (vakhra chulha – separate cooking stove) but to work for a united Akali Dal.He said that the mandate of the five member committee was primarily limited to carry out the membership drive. The SAD (Punar Surjit), after its formation, claimed to be ‘real’ Akali Dal even as official SAD also carried out a membership drive following which Sukhbir Singh Badal was re-elected as party chief.Ayali, who asserted that he had been keeping a distance from SAD (Punar Surjit) affairs except for attending a couple of meetings, said the people got ‘disenchanted’ with the SAD (Punar Surjit) because those (rebel SAD leaders) having “no moral right” to be there got associated with the party. Afterwards, he said, a number of leaders and workers also started deserting the party.The religious punishment pronounced to Akali leaders, who were part of the erstwhile Akali led govt, stemmed from the incidents of sacrilege, subsequent police firing on anti-sacrilege protestors and controversial pardon (which was subsequently revoked after a massive uproar) to Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh by Akal Takht, the chief of which is appointed by SAD controlled SGPC, for his alleged act of imitating tenth Sikh guru, Guru Gobind Singh.SAD (Punar Surjit) secretary general Gurpartap Singh Wadala, on the other hand, told the TOI that Ayali “started working at the cross purposes” after Giani Harpreet Singh was appointed as the president of the SAD (Punar Surjit). “Everything was fine till the membership drive was on. But, when Giani Harpreet Singh was appointed as president of SAD (Punar Surjit), Ayali started working at cross purposes and tilted towards SAD (Waris Punjab De). He openly started criticizing the organisations and the president. His claim that the leadership had lost the support of masses and the moral authority does not hold any legitimacy or justification because those leaders had undergone the religious punishment and exonerated by the Akal Takht,” said Wadala, who was also a member of five-member panel that conducted the membership drive.“From the day one, he was against Giani Harpreet Singh. He was sailing in the same boat and at the same time was trying to sink the same boat,” said Wadala, accusing Ayali of having ambitions to be at the top position in the party.Wadala also said that the coordination panel which was formed to work for alliance between SAD (Punar Surjit) and SAD (Waris Punjab De) had about “six to seven meetings” and the members of SAD (Waris Punjab De) “never raised the issue of any leaders having lost the moral authority to be with SAD (Punar Surjit).”Wadala added, “It was Ayali who brought in this issue in one of the meetings with an aim to torpedo the talks between the two parties.”Wadala said, “The coordination panel discussed issues which included that there should not be a hardline stance on the issue of Khalistan. We made it clear that the alliance will not take any hardline stand on the issue of Khalistan and the SAD (Waris Punjab De) agreed to that. They (SAD WPD) said Amritpal Singh would be the CM face to which we agreed but with a conditions that deputy CM face would be from SAD (Punar Surjit). Then there were discussions which centered around the tickets allocations and fielding strongest candidates of each parties in given constituencies. The panel also discussed to have a common minimum program.”The desertions from SAD (Punar Surjit)Recently former SAD MLA Surjit Singh Rakhra formally joined Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) after being expelled from SAD (Punar Surjit) for “anti-party” activities amid reports that he was likely to join. Rakhra said he had committed to the AAP that if the serving AAP govt made anti-sacrilege law a reality, he would join the AAP.Another key functionary, who quit the SAD and was made general secretary of SAD (Punar Surjit), Charanjit Singh Brar quit the breakaway faction and joined the BJP in January this year.In April this year, Barjinder Singh Brar, son of Akali veteran and former minister Tota Singh, also quit SAD (Punar Surjit) before he joined back the SAD.In March, another rebel SAD functionary and former MLA from Garhshankar Surinder Singh Bhulewal Rathan also quit SAD (Punar Surjit) to return to SAD.Another SAD functionary Sukhwant Singh Sarao who became part of SAD (Punar Surjit) and was appointed as vice president of the party resigned and joined Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).