Accusing chief minister Bhagwant Mann and Union home minister Amit Shah of working hand in glove, Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president Sukhbir Singh Badal on Tuesday said Mann would part ways with AAP to form a parallel party with BJP’s support soon.

Addressing massive gatherings in Ajnala and Raja Sansi in support of party’s candidate Anil Joshi, the SAD president said, “The CM has been holding talks with the Union home minister. It is a just a matter of time before he ditches AAP convener Arvind Kejriwal to form his own parallel party in Punjab.”

Urging Punjabis to unite to thwart this “conspiracy”, Badal appealed to them to seal the borders of the state with their votes just like the “BJP’s government had sealed the borders to prevent farmers from reaching Delhi in league with the AAP government in Punjab”.

“We will continue to fight to safeguard the rights of Punjab come what may,” he said. Badal also accused the BJP of attacking the Khalsa Panth. “This started immediately after we left the NDA government in support of farmers and against the three black laws,” he said.

Senior leader Bikram Singh Majithia also condemned the BJP and its Punjab president Sunil Jakhar for “insulting farmers by calling them anti-nationals” in a representation to the Election Commission. “This seems to be a sinister attempt to get the election postponed by giving one excuse or the other. But in reality, the truth is that the BJP wants to run away from contesting the election as it is being shunned by Punjabis,” he said.

The SAD leader also lambasted BJP candidate Taranjit Singh Sandhu for calling farmers “goons and anti-nationals” for protesting against the BJP because they have been “denied justice” by the BJP-led central government.