Since the shocking news on the Navjot Singh Sidhu’s resignation came to the surface, the Congress has been facing a hard time in retaining its strong hold on Punjab for the upcoming elections. Despite taking a huge risk by appointing Mr Sidhu as the state party chief and forcing the then-CM Amarinder Singh to step down from his post, the Gandhi siblings witnessed their party in a tornado yesterday.
A day following his resignation, Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi said that he has urged Mr Sidhu to talk to him as he is willing to discuss the concerns that led to him quitting his post.
Speaking about the same, Mr Channi told the media, “I told Sidhu that the party believes in consultations, please come and we can fix this. If anyone has any objections to any appointment, then I am not rigid on that. There is no ego tussle.”
As per reports, the resignation came after Mr Channi announced his cabinet changes within 10 days of replacing Amarinder Singh. Mr Sidhu was upset with the developments as he was expecting the CM to take his suggestions while making the decisions. Mr Channi’s changes were, however, supported by Rahul Gandhi.
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Certain officials associated with the “sacrilege” case were also given prominent positions in the cabinet, spurring Sidhu’s anger. In a bid to show their support and solidarity with his resignation, a state minister and 3 office bearers too quit their roles.
Mr Sindhu shared a video message on Wednesday morning where he said that his resignation was fueled by “a compromise in with issues, agenda in Punjab” and he “cannot compromise with his ethics and moral authority”, which seemed to be referring to the cabinet changes. “I cannot misguide the high command nor can I let them be misguided.” he added.
As per sources, the Gandhi family is not going to pursue Mr Sidhu for a long time as they had already supported him during his tiff with their loyal party member Amarinder Singh. If reports are to be believed, the Congress has begun its hunt for the next party chief as part of “Plan-B”. MP Ravneet Singh or two-time MLA Kuljit Singh Nagra are the names emerging for the post with Sidhu giving no signs of willingness to review his decision.
Amid the ruckus, former CM Amarinder Singh is giving the Congress a nightmare following his meetings scheduled with top BJP leaders including Union Home Minister Amit Shah. Stressing on the “humiliation” caused to him before resigning from his post, Mr Singh is likely to meet Mr Shah and BJP chief JP Nadda soon. However, he has refused to accept that his meetings are personal.
Immediately after Mr Sidhu announced his resignation, Mr Singh brought his “I told you so” phrase before the Congress and the Gandhis who had appointed him. He also went ahead to tag Mr Sidhu as “unstable and dangerous for Punjab”.
The Congress mess is becoming an advantage for the opposition, especially the AAP and its chief Aravind Kejriwal as in his recent campaigns in the state for the upcoming elections, he lashed taunts at the ruling party.
