Election Commission tells Delhi High Court that Akali Dal (Waris Punjab De) registration faces serious security objections

The Election Commission of India has informed the Delhi High Court that it received grave and sensitive inputs warning that registering the Akali Dal (Waris Punjab De) as a political party could hurt the sovereignty and unity of the country. The poll body stated in its affidavits that while the Chief Electoral Officer of Punjab submitted a positive verification report for the outfit on April 27, 2026, a separate sensitive objection arrived on July 9, 2026. This subsequent input alleged that the group is rooted in separatism and was founded by individuals detained under the National Security Act. Consequently, the Election Commission instructed the Punjab Chief Electoral Officer to conduct a comprehensive background inquiry, a report for which is still awaited.

Background

The legal dispute stems from a petition filed by the outfit after it applied for party registration on January 22, 2025. The group had urged the court to direct the poll body to decide on its application within a week and argued that delays could deprive it of a common election symbol for the upcoming Punjab Assembly elections in February 2027. However, the Election Commission maintained that the registration process under Section 29A of the Representation of the People Act is a detailed statutory duty rather than a simple administrative formality. Justice Saurabh Banerjee has listed the matter for further consideration on January 11, 2027.