The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) is banking heavily on its performance in Majha and Doaba regions to come closer to forming a government in Punjab, suggests an internal assessment by the party after the February 20 elections.

Even as senior leaders maintain that they would be in a position to form the government, an internal assessment by the party suggests that the SAD-Bahujan Samaj Party combine could fall short of the majority mark of 59 seats in the state assembly. This is the reason why, party insiders say, it has kept the option of an alliance with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) “open”.

The Malwa region alone sends 69 legislators to the state assembly and generally holds the key to government formation. Sources said that based on the feedback from the ground, the party could end up with not more than 20 seats in Malwa.

The party feedback from Majha and Doaba suggests that it has done well there and is pinning its hopes on these regions, which account for 25 and 23 seats, respectively.

In 2017, the SAD had won only two seats of the 25 seats in Majha – Bikram Singh Majithia winning from Majitha and Lakhbir Singh Lodhinangal from Batala. The party had won five seats of the 23 it contested in Doaba, in alliance with the BJP. This time, of the 48 seats in the region, the party is hoping to do well in at least half.

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“It is believed that Malwa holds the key, but we are getting feelers that Majha and Doaba region will give us a decisive edge,” said an Akali leader.

With the party expected to fall short of numbers, the post-poll arithmetic is already being worked out. Insiders say that if they win seats in double digits, the party won’t be averse to forming a government in alliance with the BJP and its allies, namely Punjab Lok Congress and SAD (Dhindsa).

On record, both the BJP and the Akali Dal are denying it. “It will be a clear verdict and we will not need anybody’s support,” said Punjab BJP president Ashwani Sharma.

Akali Dal spokesperson Daljeet Singh Cheema said his party was confident of forming the government on its own and denied any post-poll alliance talks.

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