As the Congress party secured a win in the Punjab assembly polls, at least 10 sitting ministers in the outgoing Shiromani Akali Dal-BJP Punjab government lost their seats.
Among the losers SAD-BJP ministers were Adarsh Pratap Singh Kairon, the son-in-law of Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal as well as BJP's Surjit Kumar Jyani and Anil Joshi.
I thank people of Punjab for giving @Akali_Dal_ & @BJP4Punjab the opportunity to serve for 10 years & for the support we got in these polls.
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) March 11, 2017
Two BJP ministers, Chunni Lal Bhagat and Madan Mohan Mittal did not contest this time.
While Bhagat's son lost this time, the BJP candidate constesting in place of Mittal also lost.
Other Akali Dal ministers who lost included Kairon, Gulzar Singh Ranike, Sohan Singh Thandal, Janmeja Singh Sekhon, Tota Singh, Sikander Singh Maluka, Surjit Singh Rakhra and Daljit Singh Cheema.
The Punjab cabinet comprised of 18 ministers, including Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal and Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal.
Congress' comeback in Punjab after a decade of SAD-BJP rule also coincided with Congress leader Capt Amarinder Singh's birthday.
Grateful to the people of Punjab for their overwhelming support! With this verdict, it's time to bring back the heydays of Punjab!
— Capt.Amarinder Singh (@capt_amarinder) March 11, 2017
The SAD-BJP alliance, which managed to get only 17 seats in the assembly, was relegated to the third spot behind the winner Congress and the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP).
The Akali Dal will not even get the status of the main opposition party in the new assembly.