BJP bets on Jat Sikh card with Dhillon’s appointment as Punjab chief

HT interview: People have made up their minds, ‘lotus’ will bloom in Punjab, says Kewal Dhillon

BJP named Kewal Singh Dhillon, 76, its first-ever Jat Sikh state chief in Punjab, months ahead of the 2027 assembly elections. The appointment signals a deliberate push beyond BJP's traditional urban base into Punjab's Sikh-majority rural electorate — a demographic shift required for any credible path to government in the state.