Manas Dasgupta
NEW DELHI, Oct 1: The constitution of a three-member co-ordination committee between the executive and the organizational wings of the party under the direct supervision of the party high command is understood to have been the solution hammered out between the Punjab chief minister Charanjit Singh Channi and disappointed state Congress president Navjot Singh Sidhu to resolve the current crisis facing the party.
The three-member panel will most likely comprise of the chief minister Channi, Navjot Singh Sidhu and a representative of the AICC, most likely the All-India Congress Committee (AICC) general secretary in-charge of Punjab affairs Harish Rawat, the former Uttarakhand chief minister. Some party sources, however, said the senior Congress leader and central observer Harish Chaudhary, could also be the third member of the committee. The AICC is expected to make an announcement in this regard soon, the party sources said.
The Channi-Sidhu meeting is also learnt to have decided to reconsider the appointments of the state director general of police and the state advocate general against whom Sidhu had taken strong objections. In return, Sidhu has agreed to withdraw his resignation as the state Congress president and continue in the post at least till the coming elections to the state Assembly due early next year to avoid the opposition parties taking advantage of the turmoil within the Congress.
The two leaders are learn to have decided that henceforth all major decisions by the government or the party would be taken in consultation of the proposed co-ordination committee, the party sources said. The decision reportedly came after over two-hour long meeting between Channi and Sidhu held at the Punjab Bhawan in Chandigarh on Thursday.
For resolving the disputes over the appointments of the DGP and AG, sources said as part of the truce plan, a panel of names would be sent to the UPSC for appointment of a new DGP dropping Iqbal Preet Singh Sahota to accommodate Sidhu’s objections. Just before his meeting with Channi, Sidhu had attacked the state’s new DGP, alleging that he wrongly indicted two Sikh youths in a desecration case and gave a clean chit to the Badals.
The desecration of a religious text allegedly took place in Punjab’s Faridkot district in 2015, whose investigation was handed over by the then Parkash Singh Badal-led government to an SIT led by current DGP Iqbal Preet Singh Sahota. Sahota was given the additional charge of the state’s DGP by the Charanjit Singh Channi-led government.
Besides Channi and Sidhu, the meeting was attended by Harish Chaudhary, minister Pargat Singh and Punjab Congress working president Kuljit Nagra, the sources said. Minister Raj Kumar Verka, MLAs Inderbir Singh Bolaria, Avtar Singh Junior and PPCC working president Pawan Goel were in another room, they said.
The development in the Punjab Congress came on a day when the deposed chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh was visiting Delhi and had called on the union home minister Amit Shah fuelling speculations that the “humiliated” former chief minister could join the BJP. Later Singh said his quitting the Congress was certain but he would not join the BJP. The sources close to Singh said he was likely to float a new party within a fortnight to create more problems for the Congress just on the eve of the Assembly elections. The reports citing sources said that nearly a dozen Congress leaders are in touch with the Captain, who is also consulting with his supporters on his next move. Additionally, a few farmer leaders have also been taken into confidence.
Also adding fuel to the fire was the former Punjab Congress chief Sunil Jakhar who hoped to fill Singh’s vacant chair but the party high command favoured the Dalit Sikh Channi for the post. Directly hitting Sidhu, who is believed to have objected Jakhar’s choice for the chief ministership, said there should be an end to attempts to undermine the authority of the Punjab chief minister time and again. Jakhar said “aspersions” being cast on the selection of the state’s advocate general and state police head were actually “questioning the integrity of the CM”.
Jakhar was obliquely referring to Sidhu who had raised questions over the appointments of the director general of police and the state’s advocate general.
“Enough is enough. Put an end to attempts to undermine the authority of CM time and again. Aspersions being cast on the selection of AG & DGP is actually questioning the integrity/competence of CM and Home Minister to deliver results,” he said. “It’s time to put the foot down and clear the air,” tweeted Jakhar.
Meanwhile, Channi, who called on the prime minister Narendra Modi on Friday, his first meeting with the PM since taking as the Punjab CM, asked the centre to withdraw the three controversial farm laws, against which thousands of farmers – mostly from Punjab and Haryana – have been protesting for nearly a year. Channi, who replaced Captain Amarinder Singh, also requested the Prime Minister to withdraw the centre’s decision to postpone paddy procurement in the largely agricultural state from today.
“Agriculture is our main source of income. I have asked the Prime Minister to help find a solution to the deadlock with farmers, who are protesting against the three controversial farm laws,” Channi told reporters after the meeting. Channi had on Thursday asked the centre to withdraw its letter on changing the date to start paddy procurement from October 1 to 11. The centre’s move to postpone procurement of kharif paddy in Punjab and Haryana till October 11 came after crop maturity got delayed owing to recent heavy rain. Crop procurement is undertaken by the central government’s agency, Food Corporation of India, along with state agencies.
Meanwhile, days after Amarinder Singh complained of “humiliation” by the party high command leading to his resignation, Harish Rawat countered his statement and said the 79-year old Amarinder was “always kept in high esteem by the party” and “was given free hand but he failed to deliver.” He added that the Punjab government led by Charanjit Singh Channi was stable.
In a statement on Friday, Rawat said, “Congress has always kept Captain Amarinder Singh and his family in high esteem. Even after suffering a crushing defeat from Patiala Constituency in 1998, he was inducted into the Congress party and immediately appointed by Sonia Gandhi as the President of Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee on three occasions from 1999 to 2002, 2010 to 2013 and 2015 to 2017. Twice, the Congress party made him the Chief Minister of Punjab from 2002 to 2007 and 2017 to 2021. As the Chief Minister, he was given a complete free hand.”
Rawat said despite continuous reminders from his colleagues and the leadership, “unfortunately, Amarinder failed to keep his promises on important issues like Bargadi, drugs, electricity etc. There was a general perception throughout the state that Captain and the Badals are helping each other, and they have a secret understanding. I was always politely suggesting him to initiate action on our election promises. At least five times I discussed these issues with Captain sahib but with no result,” Rawat said.
