In the ongoing saga of Punjab politics, Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh has challenged dissident leader Navjot Singh Sidhu to contest against him from Patiala in the 2022 Assembly polls. In doing so, the Captain has sent a strong message to the party high command that he would no longer tolerate Sidhu’s rebellious behavior and if the former cricketer is going to be encouraged by senior functionaries from Delhi, he would not yield to any pressure.
The Captain’s reaction came during an interview with a Punjabi channel where he lashed out at Sidhu for fueling speculation about his future which could be without the Congress. The Chief Minister, who continues to be the most popular political figure in his state, has simultaneously launched multiple measures to prepare the party for next year’s elections. He has started meeting MLAs in small batches, realizing that the political class had strong reservations regarding his inaccessibility. He is obviously aware that the sacrilege issue was very sensitive and could be the determining factor in next year’s showdown. Sidhu has been stressing that the Congress rode to power in 2017 because of the sacrilege matter in the state as well as its promise to strictly punish those responsible for the drugs trade. His constant complaint has been that the Chief Minister has not acted decisively against either those responsible for the sacrilege or those who pushed drugs. His insinuation is that the CM was deliberately soft on the Akalis with whom he had a secret pact. Not to allow these charges to gain credence, the Captain has now unleashed a no-holds-barred attack at Sidhu. While daring him to contest against him, he has said that he would meet a fate, similar to that of former Chief of Army Staff General J. J. Singh who was the Akali Dal candidate in 2017 from Patiala. Not taking kindly to his name being drawn in the internal Congress conflict, J. J. Singh has criticized the CM.
Several other developments that seek to deflect attention from the real issues in Punjab have also taken place recently. S. S. Randhawa and State PCC Chief Sunil Jakhar offered to resign. Some Congress leaders maintain that Jakhar had already sent his resignation to Sonia Gandhi many days before he offered to quit. He knows that he has to go. The question which now remains is whether the high command would persist with Sidhu or, bowing to the defiant Captain, bring somebody else as the Chief. In this connection, names of likely contenders for PCC president have cropped up. These include Vijay Inder Singla, a minister considered close to Rahul Gandhi, Rajya Sabha MP and senior leader Pratap Singh Bajwa, and Sports Minister Rana Gurmit Singh Sodhi, who has proximity with both the CM and several Central leaders.
Unconfirmed reports also suggest that a powerful lobby was trying to broker a deal between Sidhu and the Aam Aadmi Party. How this would play out is to be seen. In the meanwhile, there is also speculation that Sidhu may float a regional party with the support of influential people. The last word on Punjab is yet to be heard.