SAD leadership is learnt to be keen on joining hands with BJP, more so as the regional party has been on a decline since AAP came to office in 2022

NEW DELHI: Shiromani Akali Dal president Sukhbir Singh Badal met Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday, fuelling buzz about the revival of the alliance between their parties in the sharply fragmented political space of Punjab as the state gears up for assembly elections next year.

SAD under Sukhbir's father and ex-Punjab CM Parkash Singh Badal was the unquestioned big brother in the alliance, but the BJP wants a reset, citing growth in its vote share and decline in its former ally's since they parted ways. In the 2024 LS polls, the BJP had received over 18% of the vote and the SAD less than 15%.