Amit Shah to hold meeting with Badals in Chandigarh on June 7
BJP -SAD: Amit Shah to hold meeting with Badals in Chandigarh on June 7
With the SAD-BJP ties high on agenda, national Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) president Amit Shah would hold a meeting with former chief minister Parkash Singh Badal and party chief chief Sukhbir Singh Badal.
The meeting will be held for two hours in Chandigarh on June 7. The meeting scheduled between noon and 2.30 pm, say party sources.
The meeting is seen as the BJP’s attempt to reach out to its allies after back-to-back setbacks in the recent Karnataka assembly elections and bypolls in different states.
The visit comes three days after the Centre announced “Sewa Bhoj Yojana” a scheme for reimbursement of GST on langar served in religious places. GST on langar items was a sensitive religious issue for the Akalis and they had vigorously pushed for it with the central government, demanding for waiving the tax.
The meeting is seen as a measure to improve ties between the two partners ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha polls.
“More than overseeing the preparations for the Lok Sabha polls, Shah’s motive is to reach out to the SAD to improve ties. Generally, national party plans state visit much in advance. Here, we were informed only three days before,” said a former state BJP chief.
“We should not make assumptions. Our national chief is visiting every state and his Punjab’s visit was long due. As far as meeting with senior Badal is concerned, he (Parkash Singh Badal) is one of the most experienced politicians in the country at present. Amit Shah ji is visiting him to pay regards and take guidance from him,” the chief added.
-PTC News
