Former Punjab CM Amarinder Singh had once warned the aged-old Congress party that PPCC Chief Navjot Singh Sidhu cannot be trusted as he is not a stable man. Interestingly, Sidhu proved him correct as he resigned from the post of State President amidst all the chaos and turmoil in the party on Tuesday. However, Sidhu’s resignation has left Punjab Congress feeling a little worried as the chaos will reflect badly on the party in the upcoming Punjab elections.
Sidhu resigned from the party
It was only a few days back when Sidhu forced a change of guard in Punjab that led Amarinder to step down as Chief Minister. And now, he has abruptly quit from his post of President of the Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee, plunging the party into uncertainty yet again.
Sidhu, in his resignation letter to AICC chief Sonia Gandhi, wrote, “The collapse of man’s character stems from the compromise corner. I can never compromise on Punjab’s future and the agenda for welfare of Punjab. Therefore, I hereby resign as president of Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee. Will continue to serve the Congress.”
— Navjot Singh Sidhu (@sherryontopp) September 28, 2021
What made him resign?
Sidhu was inducted as PPCC chief on July 19 this year. Eyeing the Chief Minister’s post, Sidhu kept on attacking Amarinder on various issues. Furthermore, the Congress party also humiliated Amarinder to retain Sidhu, a non-performing asset. This whole development led Amarinder to step down as the Chief Minister of Punjab.
Read more: Punjab’s Chief Minister Amarinder Singh has resigned
Thereafter, Charanjit Singh Channi, who is assumed to be Sidhu’s man Friday, took over the post. With Channi as Chief Minister, Sidhu was daydreaming of controlling him to take major decisions including the cabinet reshuffle. However, Channi refused to be Sidhu’s puppet and wanted his men to be inducted into the cabinet. Whereas Sidhu, as he always does, was keenly interested in taking decisions regarding cabinet reshuffle.
Read more: Sidhu’s man Friday Charanjit Singh Channi is Punjab’s new Chief Minister
As per the sources, Sidhu was upset with Channi and the party over the appointment of Rana Gurjit Singh as a Cabinet minister. He was also against the induction of APS Deol as Advocate General. On the contrary, he wanted Deepinder Singh Patwalia to be appointed as a cabinet minister. Additionally, Sidhu was also opposing the allocation of the Home portfolio to Deputy Chief Minister Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa.
Thus, just a day after, 15 Congress MLAs were sworn in as Ministers in Charanjit Singh Channi’s government, Sidhu stepped down as PPCC Chief. Soon after Sidhu gave his resignation, Amarinder tweeted, “I told you so…he is not a stable man and not fit for the border state of Punjab.”
I told you so…he is not a stable man and not fit for the border state of punjab.
— Capt.Amarinder Singh (@capt_amarinder) September 28, 2021
Four other Ministers also resigned
Hours after Sidhu gave his resignation, several other Ministers, including Razia Sultana snd Yoginder Dhingra also stepped down from their respective posts. Razia Sultana who resigned days after taking oath as a legislator, stated in her resignation letter, “In solidarity with NavjotSidhu and millions of Congress workers across the state. I will continue to work for the party as worker in the best interest of Punjab”.
The three other Ministers to resign included; Congress leader Yoginder Dhingra, a general secretary of the state party unit, Gulzar Inder Chahal, treasurer of Punjab Congress, and Gautam Seth, the general secretary (in-charge training) of the state Congress.
Sidhu and his negligible sportsmanship
Sidhu, time and again, has been constantly proving that he holds no sportsmanship spirit. India’s 1996 cricket tour of England is still recalled for the infamous walk-out by opener Sidhu. Sidhu, as he claims, walked out because of the constant abusing by Captain Mohammed Azharuddin.
However, the former BCCI secretary Jaywant Lele, in his book, mentioned, “Each committee member tried his best to extract the reason. Sidhu was firm that it was his mistake to return in this manner and he was prepared to face the consequences.”
Will Channi be able to lead the government on his own?
Witnessing all the chaos and turmoil in the state, the question arises that will Channi be able to run the state government on his own? Does he have the capability to hand over the victory to the Congress party in upcoming elections? As of now, it is difficult to conclude the answer. With Amarinder rebuffed and humiliated by the aged-old party, the high command was already in trouble and was still in the process to figure out the next step. Now, with Sidhu’s betrayal, the party has nowhere to go.
Thus, the Congress parties bereft of strong solutions are heading towards a huge failure ahead of the Punjab Assembly elections. Given the topple of the Punjab Congress, the opposition parties including BJP will surely be benefitted.