On Tuesday, Navjot Singh Sidhu, a disgruntled Congress leader from Punjab, will meet with former party president Rahul Gandhi and general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra in Delhi. This follows a series of talks between top Congress officials and Punjab politicians to try to mediate the continuing conflict between Sidhu and Punjab chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh.
Rahul Gandhi has intensified his attempts to resolve the issue in the Congress’ Punjab branch, hosting numerous leaders from the state at his home. On Friday, he met with Vijendra Singla, Rana Gurjit Singh, Rajya Sabha MP Shamsher Singh Dhillon, and MLA Lakhvir Singh.
Following the meeting, the leaders told the media that decisions had been made to strengthen the party ahead of the Punjab assembly elections next year. Senior party officials are concerned that the severe conflict between the state’s two tall Congress leaders would harm the party’s electoral prospects.
Gandhi had already met with Sunil Jakhar, the head of the Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee, Manpreet Singh Badal, the Punjab Finance Minister, and Harish Rawat.
To settle the situation, the Congress party has created a three-member team led by Mallikarjun Kharge. Amarinder Singh, who was in Delhi for a three-day visit, was previously introduced to the panel. Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi, on the other hand, were not met by the Punjab chief minister.
In 2019, Sidhu resigned from Amarinder Singh’s government due to a change in his portfolio. However, in recent months, he has intensified his attacks. In May, the administration suffered a court defeat in a 2015 police firing case, escalating the enmity.
Sidhu has publicly attacked the chief minister, calling him a liar and accusing him of doing little about matters such as loan waivers.
Punjab is critical for the Congress since it is one of the few states where the party is in power, and the outcome will affect the party’s chances outside of the state.
Punjab is set to hold its legislative elections next year.
