Says Punjab is reeling under a severe agriculture crisis under the AAP dispensation; accuses Congress of 1984 Sikh riots
01 April, 2026 – New Delhi : Former AAP leader and Supreme Court advocate Harvinder Singh Phoolka on Wednesday joined the BJP in the presence of Union ministers and senior party leaders in the national capital.
The move comes at a time when the saffron party is expanding its outreach in Punjab and among communities affected by the 1984 riots.
Phoolka’s legal credentials and public stature may lend additional weight to the party’s narrative on justice and accountability.
“Punjab is reeling under a severe agriculture crisis under the AAP dispensation. Reports have suggested that the state’s groundwater will drop below 300 metres by 2039 and turn toxic.
There is a fear of the land turning barren. The ruling AAP is least bothered about the ground situation,” Phoolka said at a press conference.
“The state’s law and order situation is also in the doldrums. The current dispensation is silent on corruption, gang wars, extortion calls, and the rising drug abuse among the youth,” he added.
Phoolka’s public life has been defined by his sustained legal battle for justice for victims of the 1984 anti-Sikh riots. He played a central role in pursuing accountability against several Congress leaders, including H K L Bhagat, Sajjan Kumar and Jagdish Tytler, accused in connection with the violence.
“I have been fighting the fight for the 1984 riots (victims) for the last 40 years, and have been supported by the BJP since then…I have fought my fight together with them. I have also done a lot of legal work for the BJP. I was with the AAP for 3 years from 2014-2017. But my close association has been with the BJP since the beginning,” he said.
He also accused the Congress of committing genocide in 1984 by massacring thousands of innocent Sikhs.
“The hands of Congress are stained with the blood of the Sikh. The entire genocide was planned by Indira Gandhi during her lifetime, and the same was executed after her death as the party was looking for an opportunity to kill the Sikhs. The tragic episode would have occurred even if she was alive,” he claimed.
Phoolka first entered politics with the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in 2014, contesting the Ludhiana Lok Sabha seat in Punjab. He lost the election to Congress leader Ravneet Singh Bittu, who has since joined the BJP and serves as a Union minister.
In the 2017 Punjab Assembly elections, he secured victory from the Dakha constituency, defeating Akali leader Manpreet Singh Ayali. He briefly served as the Leader of Opposition in the Punjab Assembly for approximately three months the same year.
However, his political journey with AAP was short-lived. After resigning from party positions in 2015, he formally exited the party in January 2019.
Union minister Hardeep Singh Puri, Delhi minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa, BJP National General Secretary Tarun Chugh, Delhi BJP chief Virender Sachdevva, among others were also present at the induction programme.
The Tribune