Chandigarh, September 17, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
Senior BJP leader and former Punjab Congress president Sunil Jakhar on Thursday categorically ruled out a return to his former party, dismissing social media speculation about his possible re-entry into the Congress as “false” and “baseless”.
Jakhar issued the clarification through a post on X amid reports and speculation about the Congress reaching out to some of its former Punjab leaders ahead of the 2027 Assembly elections.
“I have come across certain social media posts suggesting that I’m rejoining congress party. I want to place on record that these are false, baseless insinuations far removed from truth. I am with the BJP and committed to the ideology of Saab ka Sath, Saab ka Vikas as championed by Prime Minister Sh. Narendra Modi ji,” Jakhar posted.
His categorical statement puts to rest, at least from his side, the speculation surrounding his political future and a possible return to the party with which his family had remained associated for decades.
Jakhar, who served as president of the Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee from 2017 to 2021, quit the Congress in May 2022 following prolonged differences with the party leadership and joined the BJP on May 19, 2022.
His departure from the Congress came after a turbulent period in the Punjab unit. Jakhar had been among the names discussed for the Chief Minister’s post after Capt Amarinder Singh stepped down in September 2021, but the Congress eventually chose Charanjit Singh Channi to head the government.
After joining the BJP, Jakhar rose to head its Punjab unit. He was appointed Punjab BJP president in July 2023.
Following the BJP’s failure to win any of Punjab’s 13 Lok Sabha seats in the 2024 parliamentary elections, Jakhar offered to resign from the post. His resignation was not immediately acted upon, and he continued to remain the state unit president while uncertainty persisted over the organisational leadership.
In July 2025, the BJP appointed former state president Ashwani Sharma as Working President of its Punjab unit, signalling an organisational transition.
The leadership issue was finally settled on May 28, 2026, when the BJP appointed former Congress MLA Kewal Singh Dhillon as president of the Punjab unit, succeeding Jakhar. Dhillon subsequently assumed charge of the organisation.
Jakhar, however, made it clear at the time that his association with the BJP would continue beyond the position he had held.
His latest statement is an even more explicit assertion of that position. By declaring that he remains with the BJP and is committed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s “Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas” philosophy, Jakhar has directly rejected the speculation of a political homecoming to the Congress.
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