Asked about his age before the 2007 Punjab election, Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal curtly replied: “Bhake dikhawan (Shall I run and show you)?” He was 79 years old then. Ten years later, Badal continues to be the chief ministerial candidate for the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) and seems to have no plan for retirement.
Before the announcement of the 2017 Assembly election, he termed the current elections the “last rites for the Congress party”. The results on Saturday, however, have proved him wrong. But, the defeat can’t take away the stature he has earned in a political career spanning 70 years. He is credited with being the youngest and oldest CM in the country. And, credited for keeping a check on militancy in Punjab.
Badal’s popularity has not taken a dip among panthic (Sikh-sect) voters and rural voters, despite drubbings. Though he continues to be in the saddle, he has slowly passed the baton to his son and deputy CM, Sukhbir Singh Badal, a US-educated management graduate. Sukhbir was made party president in 2008. He is married to Harsimrat Kaur Badal, the Union Cabinet minister for food processing, and the family is known for their flourishing businesses in transport, renewable energy, hospitality and media. Their exponential rise has not gone down well with ordinary people, many accusing them of corruption.
