Congress-turned-BJP leader Kewal Singh Dhillon took charge as the Punjab BJP chief on Wednesday amid a call by former working president Ashwani Sharma that the party should remember traditional BJP workers’ contribution, while outgoing president Sunil Jakhar insisted that the BJP was a party of Punjabis, and not of Hindus or Sikhs.
In the backdrop of reports that traditional BJP leaders were regularly being sidelined for key posts in the state, Sharma said the BJP believed in “we and us, not I”.
Speaking at a function where Dhillon formally took charge, Sharma said the contribution of long-standing karyakartas (party workers) could not be forgotten. “The work of karyakartas never ends. Posts come and go,” he said.
Sharma, a three-time former state president of the party and Pathankot MLA with deep RSS roots, said, “When Dhillon was made the president, many asked me about my fate. I said I would be willing to even clean the streets by picking a broom…not just clean the streets, but even scatter the broom — referring to the election symbol of AAP.”
He said BJP workers stood firm working for peace during the dark days of militancy. Dhillon’s appointment as the first Jat Sikh president of the Punjab BJP marks a clear push by the party to expand beyond its traditional urban Hindu base into the rural Sikh heartland, particularly in the Malwa region, ahead of the 2027 Assembly elections. The former Congress MLA from Barnala and industrialist joined the BJP in 2022.
Traditional BJP leaders, who rose through the RSS and spent decades in the saffron fold, now find themselves outnumbered in key visibility roles, leading to murmurs of discontent.
Dhillon said his priority would be farmers’ welfare, industrial revival and combating the drug menace.
In his maiden address after taking charge, Dhillon said he was confident of overcoming challenges, drawing from his past experience. “I have won against odds earlier also,” he said, adding that the party had already achieved a significant milestone by “winning the Capital”.
Dhillon thanked his predecessors for laying a strong foundation for the party in the state. “We have won the Capital. Thanks to earlier leaders like Jakhar and Sharma, the platform is ready,” he said.
Dhillon described farmers as “the backbone” of the state and pointed to the neighbouring Haryana model. “Haryana is giving the MSP. We will give the MSP on all crops. We will give incentives for diversification,” he said.
The new BJP chief recalled his role in bringing the industry to the region. “I brought Pepsi Cola and potato chips units here… we will bring more agri-based industry,” he said, emphasising value addition in agriculture. “Agriculture is the raw material. We can make so much from it. Like we are making potato chips.”
Dhillon outlined a bold industrial roadmap for Punjab, promising to replicate Taiwan’s success through high-tech manufacturing. “We will have semiconductor industries and make Punjab like Taiwan, which has thrived on such an industry,” he said.
Outgoing state unit president Jakhar said there was a lot of unnecessary talk about the BJP needing a Sikh leader…the “real thing is that the BJP is a party of Punjabis, irrespective of religion”. He said the party had come through tough times and sacrifices and a platform had been set to launch the final push for the 2027 Assembly elections.
