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Capt. Singh Resigns: Congress Crisis Deepens In Punjab

By Sunil Garodia
First publised on 2021-09-18 14:34:43

About the Author

Sunil Garodia Editor-in-Chief of indiacommentary.com. Current Affairs analyst and political commentator. Author of Cyber Scams in India, Digital Arrest, The Money Trap and The Human Hack

One part of the drama in Congress' crisis in Punjab came to an end today with the resignation of chief minister Capt. Amarinder Singh. Singh decided to resign before a meeting with the MLAs as he felt humiliated having third such meeting in a month. Capt. Singh said that he will take a decision about the future after discussions with his supporters. Singh regretted that the party felt he was not doing his job even after his 52 years in politics.

The bitterness in Capt. Singh was visible when he tore into Navjot Singh Sidhu with whom he had been having a running feud for the last several months. He said that Sidhu is an incompetent man and will be a disaster as chief minister. He also claimed that Sidhu will be a threat to national security as he is friends with the Pakistani PM Imran Khan and the army chief of the neighbouring country. Capt. Singh categorically said that he will oppose the move to appoint him chief minister.

It was clear ever since Sidhu started targeting Capt. Singh that the Congress wanted him out. But such is his seniority and clout that the party could not say that to him. Hence, it started creating situations that humiliated him. First, despite his vehement opposition, Sidhu was made PCC chief. Then Sidhu and his advisors started issuing demeaning statements against the chief minister. Finally, meetings of MLAs started to be held every few days and Capt. Singh was subjected to such humiliation that there was no option left for him.

But was that the right way to go about it? If the Congress felt that there was anti-incumbency and it would be better if the party went to the polls next year by projecting a fresh face, it should have made a clean transition. By pushing Capt. Singh to the limit and making him bitter enough to oppose any move to appoint Sidhu as the chief minister, the party has made it very difficult for itself. It is now clear that it will have to go for a compromise candidate and the name of former PCC president Sunil Jhakhar is being bandied about as the next chief minister. The next part of the drama is likely to be very interesting and the Congress has already conceded a penalty corner. It will have to tread very carefully if it does not want to score a self-goal.

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