Manas Dasgupta
NEW DELHI, Sept 30: Even as the infighting within the Congress between the official and the dissident groups escalated further with Kapil Sibal hitting out at the central leadership, the party is learnt to have resolved the Punjab imbroglio, at least for the time being, with Navjot Singh Sidhu agreeing to withdraw his resignation and stay on as the state Congress president.
The new Punjab chief minister Charanjit Singh Channi is credited with the success to resolve the crisis with his down to earth approach to the problem leading to Sidhu’s abrupt resignation as the party chief. Though the outcome of the Sidhu-Channi meet in Chandigarh that lasted for over three hours on Thursday evening was not immediately disclosed, it was learnt that Channi agreed to place all his objections over cabinet formation and some other official appointments before his cabinet at a meeting on October 4.
“Sidhu Sahab maan gaye hain (Sidhu has relented),” said sources after the two leaders emerged smiling from the three-hour-long meeting.
“All issues between the two were resolved and Sidhu is likely to continue at his post as the chief of Punjab Congress. The concerns that have been raised by Sidhu will be placed before the Cabinet on October 4. However, many of the issues that Navjot Sidhu has raised are regarding the Cabinet appointments only,” the party sources said.
The fact that Sidhu agreed to drive down from Patiala to Chandigarh to meet Channi at the invitation of the chief minister was indicative of the fact that the cricketer-turned-politician had mellowed down and was agreeable for a compromise if some of the issues of his concern were addressed by the government and the party, though just before leaving for Chandigarh Sidhu had fired another salvo reiterating his objections to the appointment of Iqbal Preet Singh Sahota as the state director general of police.
On Tuesday, Sidhu resigned from the post of the president of Punjab Congress saying that he won’t be able to compromise on Punjab’s future. In a video, he also said politics for him is taking a stand for the people, for Punjab, not for his own benefit. The resignation apparently took the Congress leadership by surprise as Sidhu did not discuss the issue with any senior Congress leader. While the resignation was not accepted, Channi on Wednesday had said he personally called Sidhu for a meeting. Downplaying the crisis at a time when his Cabinet, which has only a few months to work before the election, has just been formed, Channi said, “Party is supreme. The government takes note of the need of the party.” Channi also said he was not rigid over the appointments and if Sidhu has any objections then it could be discussed.
Sidhu had been upset about key appointments including those of ministers, the police chief and the Attorney General. Sources say Channi has accepted Sidhu’s demand on at least one of those sticking points. The details of the agreement would be revealed in Delhi, said sources.
Before leaving for Chandigarh, Sidhu had given some signs of a possible compromise. “Chief Minister has invited me for talks … will reciprocate by reaching Punjab Bhawan, Chandigarh at 3:00 PM today, he is welcome for any discussions!” Sidhu tweeted. Mohammad Mustafa, adviser to Navjot Sidhu, had also said the “issue will be resolved soon”.
“The Congress leadership understands Navjot Sidhu and Sidhu is not beyond the Congress leadership. He is not Amarinder Singh, who never cared for the Congress and its leadership,” Mustafa said. He said the Congress leadership understands that Sidhu “acts emotionally at times.” Sidhu’s resignation was a surprise for the Gandhis; Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra had supported him against Amarinder Singh, taking a huge political risk close to the polls. Channi had said on Wednesday that he could reconsider some of the appointments. “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,” he had said.
The Congress has turned into turmoil ever since the party high command decided for a change of leadership in keeping with Sidhu’s demand and forced Captain Amarinder Singh to relinquish the chief minister’s post. A hugely disappointed Singh, who for several days resisted the move and held several rounds of meeting with the high command leaders to convince them that his stepping down would destabilize the Congress, finally had to submit his resignation even while fuming that he would not take the “humiliation” lying low.
Singh, who called on the union home minister Amit Shah on Wednesday, sought to end the speculation on Thursday about his joining the BJP though he said he was certain to quit the Congress. Later in the day, Singh said the turbulence within the state party had come as a godsend to Arvind Kejriwal’s Aam Aadmi Party. AAP, he said, was “on the rise” in the state, fuelled by the decline of the Congress and this, he said, had been the findings of a recent survey by his own party. The survey — done by the Congress between July and September — shows that it has “seen a 20% decline”, said the former Chief Minister.
“This election will be very different with the Congress, AAP, Akali Dal, factions of the Akali Dal, and there may be another front emerging too… so, it will be a very different election,” Mr Singh said. AAP — which has been targeting neighbouring Punjab since its stupendous victory in Delhi in 2015 — has not been able to make sufficient headway in the state in elections so far.
While in the 2014 Lok Sabha election, it won four of the state’s 13 seats, its performance in the 2017 state elections fell short of target despite a massive initial surge of support. The party could only win 20 of the 117 assembly seats with a 23.8 per cent vote share. This time, Arvind Kejriwal, who has been making regular visits to the state, has again applied the Delhi formula, promising the state free power and water. On Thursday, he followed up those initial promises with another eight on healthcare — which includes free treatment, mohalla clinics and upgraded infrastructure in government hospitals.
On the sidelines of the Punjab crisis and Sidhu’s sudden resignation, the infighting within the Congress sharpened with a senior leader like Kapil Sibal, one among the group of 23 (G-23) who had been demanding for a revamp of the party set up and a regular party president, targeting the party’s central leadership for handling the Punjab issue on piecemeal basis and castigating the leaders who at a drop of hat threaten to resign from the party.
Soon after his statement, a group of “loyal” Congressmen shouted slogans at Sibal’s residence and staged demonstrations against him. This instantly brought reactions from other G-23 members who condemned the anti-Sibal demonstrations such actions were not acceptable in a democratic party.
As the Congress versus Congress deepens, G-23 leader Shashi Tharoor on Thursday extended support to Sibal and countering the narrative of the pro-high command team that Congress gave recognition to Sibal, Tharoor said Kapil Sibal is a true Congressman who fought many legal battles for the Congress. “As a democratic party, we need to listen to what he has to say, disagree if you must but not in this way. Our priority is to strengthen ourselves to take on the BJP!” Tharoor tweeted.
G-23 leader Kapil Sibal on Wednesday said it was ironic that people considered close to the high command are leaving the party while G-23 leaders who had written to Sonia Gandhi seeking election to the post of the party president will stick to the party and will fight for reforms. Sibal said the party has no president and so he does not know who takes a decision. He also said G-23 is no Ji Huzoor 23 and hence he will continue raising questions.
The comments evoked a sharp response from a section of Congress leaders. While Youth Congress leaders protested outside Sibal’s house, damaging a car. “Those who are trying to defend the command performance last night, this is what happened at Kapil Sibal’s house. They damaged the car. Stood on top so it caved in. Threw tomatoes both outside and inside the house. If this is not hooliganism then what else is it?” Congress leader Manish Tewari tweeted.
Tharoor termed the act of hooliganism as ‘shameful’.
Congress leader Natwar Singh on Thursday directly trained the gun at Rahul Gandhi and said three people take decisions in the Congress and one of them has no official designation. “They have decided to remove Amarinder Singh! He is such a veteran politician,” Natwar Singh said expressing resentment over the leadership.