 "It was just political compulsion: Amarinder Singh on SAD quitting NDA")
Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh has termed the Akali Dal's decision to quit the NDA as a case of "political compulsion" for the Badals, who were left with no other option after the BJP's public criticism of the SAD over the farm bills.
Amarinder Singh said there was no moral high ground involved in the decision of the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD).
The Akalis had no choice before them, since the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) had already made it clear that it held SAD responsible for failing to convince the farmers about the goodness of the agriculture bills.
The SAD decision to quit NDA was just the culmination of their saga of lies and deception, which eventually led to the party being cornered on the issue of farm bills, said the chief minister.
SAD chief Sukhbir Singh Badal was virtually caught between the devil and the deep sea after his initial unprincipled stand on the farm ordinances, followed by the sudden U-turn in the face of farmer protests, he added.
The chief minister said with the BJP-led ruling coalition at the Centre exposing the SAD's web of lies, fabrications and doublespeak, the Akalis could not have done anything except leave the NDA.
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But far from helping them save face, which they probably hoped to do, the Akalis will now find themselves in a bigger political mess now, having been left with no place either in Punjab or at the Centre, he added.
Amarinder Singh said if Sukhbir Badal, Harsimrat Badal and other SAD leaders had any shame left, they should admit to their deceitful actions as part of the Union government and beg the farmers for forgiveness.