Sidhu 'will remain Punjab Congress chief'; to meet CM today
Days after stepping down as the Punjab Congress chief, Navjot Singh Sidhu may withdraw his resignation, his adviser Mohammad Mustafa has indicated. Mustafa said the issues that triggered Sidhu's resignation would be resolved soon, adding that he will continue to be the Punjab Congress chief. Sidhu also has a meeting with Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi at 3 pm on Thursday.
Mustafa's comments came as Sidhu's resignation whipped up a political storm in poll-bound Punjab. Sidhu "acts emotionally at times" and the Congress leadership understands, Mustafa was quoted as saying by NDTV. "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," he said.
CM Charanjit Singh Channi also spoke to Sidhu telephonically on Wednesday. Channi said he is likely to reconsider some of the government appointments that irked Sidhu. "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," Channi said.
Separately, Sidhu announced in a tweet that he is going to meet Channi at 3 pm on Thursday. "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.
On Wednesday, Sidhu had released a video message defending his resignation. In the video, he cited the induction of "tainted" MLAs into the Punjab Cabinet by Channi and other government appointments as the main reason for his displeasure. "We have worked on removing tainted leaders and officers from the system. But they are back. I will not allow that to happen," Sidhu had said.
Sidhu was reportedly unhappy over the inclusion of Rana Gurjit Singh in the state Cabinet, the appointment of APS Deol as the state's Attorney General, and Iqbal Preet Singh Sahota as the state's DGP. He also opposed Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa's appointment as Home Minister.
In a sudden move, Sidhu resigned as the Punjab Congress chief on Tuesday, merely 72 days after taking charge. His sudden resignation came as a shock to the Congress high command, which had appointed him as the Punjab Congress chief against the wishes of former CM Amarinder Singh. The party leadership is reportedly putting in efforts to persuade Sidhu to withdraw his resignation.
