Former Jalalabad MLA Raminder Singh Awla has quit the Congress and joined the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) in Chandigarh, The Tribune reported on Sunday, in a defection that comes as Punjab's parties reposition ahead of the 2027 Assembly elections.

Source: The Tribune

SAD president Sukhbir Singh Badal announced the induction on X, saying he was happy to welcome Awla, a senior leader and former Jalalabad MLA, into the party, Report Wire reported. Badal recalled that Jalalabad had elected him three times and said the constituency saw major development during Akali Dal governments; he added that Awla's entry would strengthen the party not only in Jalalabad but across the border belt, and that Awla would work to ensure the party's victory in 2027. These are Badal's statements, reported as his claims.

Source: Report Wire

Awla's history in Jalalabad makes the switch significant: in the 2019 Jalalabad bypoll, contesting on a Congress ticket, he defeated the Akali Dal candidate by about 16,000 votes in a seat regarded as a traditional Akali stronghold, ending a 17-year wait for the Congress there. The seat had fallen vacant after Badal was elected to the Lok Sabha.

Within the Congress, Awla rose from a booth-level worker to president of the Punjab Youth Congress and general secretary of the Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee, and he also served as a secretary of the All India Congress Committee with charge of Karnataka, according to Report Wire.

No Congress response to Awla's exit had been reported at the time of writing. Awaaz Punjab will update this story if the party reacts.