Kewal Singh Dhillon had won as a Congress MLA from Barnala constituency in 2007 and again in 2012. However, he lost the 2017 Assembly elections. He left Congress in June 2022 and joined the BJP. He later unsuccessfully contested the Sangrur Lok Sabha by-election as a BJP candidate. Photo Credit: X@KewalDhillonPB
Ahead of the 2027 assembly election in Punjab, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Thursday (May 28, 2026) appointed Kewal Singh Dhillon as its new state president, hoping to carry on the momentum of its recent electoral victories in West Bengal, Assam, and Puducherry, into Punjab.
Mr. Dhillon, who joined the BJP in 2022, replaces Sunil Jakhar, who is also a former Congress leader. Mr. Dhillon had won as a Congress MLA from Barnala constituency in 2007 and again in 2012. However, he lost the 2017 Assembly elections. He left Congress in June 2022 and joined the BJP. He later unsuccessfully contested the Sangrur Lok Sabha by-election as a BJP candidate.
The saffron party has historically struggled to make inroads in Punjab, but has lately been aggressively building its campaign momentum to gain a foothold in the border State. In the ‘Jat Sikh’ dominated politics of Punjab, the appointment of Mr. Dhillon — a Jat Sikh face — is seen as latest attempt, pushing for its expansion across the State by consolidating its position among the community. He hails from the ‘politically’ significant Malwa region, which comprises 69 Assembly constituencies of the total 117 seats in the State.
The move is considered part of the BJP’s broader effort to solidify its ‘pro-Sikh’ credentials, which it has been pursuing by propagating the Central government’s steps taken in the interest of Sikhs since 2014. The party has already been making an outreach to the Other Backward Classes (OBCs) and Dalits in a bid to pull off another case of ‘social engineering’ in order to strengthen in the State. To achieve its solo ambitions, in March this year, Union Minister Amit Shah had sounded the party’s poll bugle at the ‘Badlav rally’ in Moga, declaring the party would be contesting the Assembly election alone in Punjab.
Meanwhile, the party has also appointed Archana Gupta as its president for its Haryana unit, replacing Mohan Lal Badoli. Ms. Gupta is a radiologist from Panipat. She served as the state general secretary of the party in Haryana.
The appointments were made by BJP national president Nitin Naveen and came into effect immediately. The orders were issued by Arun Singh, national general secretary and headquarters In-charge of the party
Published – May 28, 2026 01:48 pm IST
