The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) on Friday determined to help National Democratic Alliance (NDA)’s presidential nominee Droupadi Murmu within the July 18 election for India’s highest constitutional put up.

SAD president Sukhbir Singh Badal additionally met Murmu, who arrived in Chandigarh to hunt help from a piece of leaders in Haryana and Punjab, to convey his social gathering’s resolution that was taken in its core committee assembly earlier within the day. He was accompanied by social gathering leaders Balwinder Singh Bhunder, Charanjit Singh Atwal, Prem Singh Chandumajra and Harcharan Singh Bains.

“She (Murmu) has emerged as a symbol of the poor and tribal segments in the country,” reads a decision handed by the SAD’s prime management after a three-hour-long assembly on the social gathering’s headquarters right here.

On Thursday, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) nationwide president JP Nadda had sought help for Murmu from Sukhbir Badal. The SAD has two members within the Lok Sabha — Sukhbir and his spouse and former Union minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal — and three legislators within the state meeting, who’re eligible to vote within the sixteenth presidential election.

The SAD had been part of the NDA for over twenty years and ran the Punjab authorities in alliance with the BJP for 15 years — from 1997-2002 and 2007-17 — earlier than severing ties in 2020 over the contentious farm legal guidelines.

“We have differences with the BJP over insecurity among the minorities and injustice met to Punjabis, especially the Sikhs. However, our party is inspired by the ideals placed before humanity by the great Gurus for supporting the poor and downtrodden,” said a party spokesperson, adding that the party decided to support Murmu as “she symbolises the dignity of womenfolk and the cause of minorities and backward classes.”

Murmu meets Punjab, Haryana leaders

Earlier, Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar, Deputy CM Dushyant Chautala, Haryana BJP President OP Dhankar and Punjab BJP President Ashwani Sharma welcomed the Presidential nominee at Haryana Bhawan.

Union ministers Anurag Thakur and Arjun Ram Meghwal, Haryana speaker Gian Chand Gupta, state cabinet ministers and BJP-JJP legislators besides Chandigarh MP Kirron Kher were also present, said officials.

Murmu appealed to the leaders to support her, saying: “As a tribal woman, I never thought that I would be made a candidate for this post. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has proved the slogan of ‘Sabka Saath, Sabka Vishwas’ by nominating me as the candidate for the highest post of the country.” She hoped that apart from the BJP and its allies, MLAs and MPs of other parties and independents, too, will support her candidature.

Murmu, a tribal leader from Odisha who was the Jharkhand governor from 2015-21, and her challenger Yashwant Sinha are the only two candidates left in the fray for the Presidential elections after scrutiny of nomination papers.Besides all NDA constituents and SAD, parties like YSR Congress, BJD and the BSP have also extended support to her.

Options before party limited: Sukhbir

Speaking to media persons after the core committee meeting, the SAD president said that the party was deeply concerned over the issues of human rights violations, religious intolerance and freedom of speech.

“The party can never be separated from its agenda for Punjab, minorities, farmers and poor. But in the upcoming presidential poll, the options before the party are limited, as they can’t support a candidate sponsored and supported by the Congress party in a direct or indirect manner,” stated Sukhbir.

The SAD chief stated that points associated to the Sikh neighborhood and Punjab remained unresolved and the social gathering continues its battle for the trigger. The points embrace securing the discharge of all Sikh prisoners who’ve accomplished their jail time period, handing over Chandigarh and different Punjabi talking areas to the state, decision of Punjab’s river water concern as per the riparian precept in addition to different points like guaranteeing the standing of Panjab University stays unchanged.