The Shiromani Akali Dal it is still in talks with the BJP over sharing of seat for the October 21 assembly elections in Haryana.

SAD’s General Secretary in-charge Balwinder Singh Bhunder revealed this after holding a party meeting on Monday in Kurukshetra in Haryana, where the aspirants of party tickets from over 30 seats in the state turned up along with their 4,000-odd supporters.

Asked to comment on reports that BJP was inclined to leave only two seats for the SAD, Bhunder said, “We have learnt about this only through the media. But as far as I know, no final decision has been taken by the BJP. Currently, we are still in talks with them on seat sharing issue.”

The comment comes days after Bhunder had said if negotiations on seat sharing with the ruling BJP in Haryana fail to reach any conclusion, the party would contest the next month’s Vidhan Sabha elections on its own.

A committee headed by Bhunder has been tasked to hold negotiations with the Bharatiya Janata Party on seat sharing for the Haryana polls. The committee that includes other members like Prem Singh Chandumajra and Surjit Singh Rakhra,will also prepare the party’s election campaign strategy.

The party is also looking forward to women candidates for the upcoming polls. In the same context, Bhunder shared that at the Kurukshetra meeting, SAD interviewed some of the candidates interested in contesting elections that included some women candidates too. The screening committee headed by Akali leader Bhunder had been recently formed for this purpose.

BJP leaders from Haryana say any decision on seat sharing in Haryana will be taken by the party’s central leadership. The ruling BJP has set a target of winning 75 plus seats in the 90-member state assembly.