Shiromani Akali Dal leader Harsimrat Kaur Badal took on the BJP on social media after her party quit the alliance over the controversial farm bills. Post the widespread farm laws protests in Punjab, a state focussed on agriculture, the Akali Dal has quit the National Democratic Alliance. In a tweet, she said the NDA was no longer the alliance "envisioned" by former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee.
Her tweet said:
"If pain & protests of 3 cr punjabis fail to melt the rigid stance of GoI (Government Of India), it's no longer the #NDA envisioned by Vajpayee ji & Badal sahab. An alliance that turns a deaf ear to its oldest ally & a blind eye to pleas of those who feed the nation is no longer in the interest of Pb, (sic)," her tweet read.
Her social media remarks come on the heels of resignation from Prime Minister Narendra Modi's cabinet as her party, Akali Dal, faced protests from farmers. Badal tweeted that she was "Proud to stand with farmers as their daughter & sister" just as she quit before the farm bills were passed by a truncated session.
If Pain & Protests of 3 cr punjabis fail to melt the rigid stance of GoI, it's no longer the #NDA envisioned by Vajpayee ji & Badal sahab. An alliance that turns a deaf ear to its oldest ally & a blind eye to pleas of those who feed the nation is no longer in the interest of Pb. https://t.co/OqU6at00Jx
— Harsimrat Kaur Badal (@HarsimratBadal_) September 26, 2020
The Akali Dal is the third major NDA member to pull out of the grouping after the Shiv Sena and the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) amid protests over the contentious farm bills that cleared the parliament last week.