CHANDIGARH: Senior Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) leader and former minister Sohan Singh Thandal joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) ahead of the November 13 bypolls in Punjab.
Thandal is expected to be the BJP candidate from the Chabbewal (SC) assembly seat, which has not yet seen an official candidate announcement.
Thandal, a core committee member of the SAD and former minister for jails, tourism, and cultural affairs in Punjab, was welcomed into the BJP by the party’s Punjab in-charge Vijay Rupani and former union minister Som Parkash. He previously contested the 2024 Lok Sabha polls from Hoshiarpur on an SAD ticket, but was unsuccessful.
Thandal had won the 2012 assembly elections from Chabbewal but lost in the 2017 and 2022 elections. The bypolls in Chabbewal, Gidderbaha, Dera Baba Nanak, and Barnala are being held after their MLAs were elected to the Lok Sabha.
The deadline for filing nominations is October 25, with polling on November 13 and results to be announced on November 23.
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Read MoreIP Singh is Senior Assistant Editor at The Times of India. He covers news in Jalandhar and neighbouring districts, and writes on politics, contemporary trends, Punjabi diaspora and heritage preservation. He specializes in deciphering religio-political peculiarities and complexities of Punjab. His hobbies include reading up on a variety of subjects.
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