The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) is set to undertake a major organisational overhaul in Haryana and elect a new state president, nearly a year after the post fell vacant following the resignation of Sharanjit Singh Sahota.At a high-level meeting chaired by veteran SAD leader Balwinder Singh Bhunder, the party leadership confirmed plans to restructure its entire state hierarchy in a bid to strengthen its base among the Sikh and Punjabi communities in in the state.Sahota had stepped down as president of the party’s Haryana unit in March 2025, along with general secretary Sarbjot Singh Sabbi and other leaders, expressing dissent over the decision of the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) regarding the removal of Takht Jathedars.Seeking a fresh start, the SAD leadership has now decided to restart the process of electing a new state president and reorganising the party structure in Haryana.During the meeting, Bhunder said feedback from the Sikh community in the state was discussed at length.“As the election of state president of the party was due, it was unanimously decided to start the process in this direction. Besides this, the organisational structure too would be rearranged,” he said.Bhunder added that feedback from the community indicated widespread resentment against the functioning of the Haryana Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee (HSGMC).“The community was feeling that their voice had been weakened following the constitution of a separate gurdwara committee for Haryana,” he said.Senior SAD leader Daljit Singh Cheema said the aim was to provide a platform where the Sikh as well as Punjabi community in Haryana could raise their concerns freely.“The senior leadership of Haryana gathered at the party headquarters in Chandigarh to discuss ways and means to organise the party in the state,” he said.Cheema added that the membership drive and the election of district and state delegates had already been completed, but the election of the state president was still pending.“We have called up the Haryana Sikh leaders to know about their view point. Soon, a decision will be made,” he said.Commenting on the functioning of the HSGMC, Cheema said many Sikhs in Haryana were now realising the role played by the SGPC in managing gurdwara affairs before the formation of the separate state body.“The leaders said the gurdwara affairs were being mismanaged even as the collective voice of the community had been weakened and the Sikh body was left redundant since its inception,” he said.Amid internal differences and alleged mismanagement, the maiden General House meeting of the HSGMC in January failed to pass its proposed annual budget of about Rs 104 crore for 2026-27, stalling several development, religious and social programmes.HSGMC president Jagdish Singh Jhinda has now fixed March 31 as the new date for a meeting to finalise the budget.Among those who attended the SAD meeting included Raghujit Singh Virk, Baldev Singh Kaimpuri, Harkesh Singh Mohri, Tejinderpal Singh Dhillon and Amarjit Kaur.