Sidhu in Chandigarh but no meeting with Captain
Monday’s developments are a sign that the crisis is still simmering in the party’s Punjab unit
CHANDIGARH: A day after he became the new Punjab Congress president, expectation was that Navjot Singh Sidhu will call on chief minister Capt Amarinder Singh.
Sidhu, whose appointment was announced on Sunday night, spent the entire day visiting cabinet ministers and other senior leaders of the party in Chandigarh and Mohali, but their much-anticipated meeting did not materialise even though they were within a few hundred meters of each other at one point of time.
The new state Congress head was with leaders at cabinet minister Tript Rajinder Singh Bajwa’s house, whereas the chief minister was having a meeting with MLAs from Patiala district at his official residence.
Cabinet minister Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa and MLA Amrinder Singh Raja Warring had indicated earlier that the two leaders would meet.
Sidhu returned to Patiala after meeting dozens of party leaders in the tricity and will travel to Amritsar on Tuesday. Both sides later said there was no meeting planned or requested.
Monday’s developments are sign that the crisis is still simmering. Amarinder, who had opposed Sidhu’s appointment, is furious with the Amritsar East MLA for making “derogatory” tweets and statements against him.
The CM told Punjab affairs in-charge Harish Rawat, one of the three persons tasked with resolving the crisis in the Congress, that he would met Navjot Sidhu only after a public apology from him.
Till Monday night, there was no apology or response from the new appointee on his demand.
Amarinder has not put out a tweet or statement to welcome the changes so far whereas Congress’ other two chief ministers Ashok Gehlot (Rajasthan) and Bhupesh Baghel (Chhattisgarh) congratulated Sidhu on Twitter.
Earlier, Sidhu arrived in Chandigarh in the morning and met former chief minister Rajinder Kaur Bhattal, assembly speaker Rana KP Singh, former PPCC chief Sunil Jakhar and cabinet ministers Tript Rajinder Singh Bajwa, Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa, Razia Sultana and Charanjit Singh Channi. Jakhar, Randhawa and some MLAs joined him as he went around meeting other leaders.