WhileCongress is trying to corner the government for the mismanagement of the Covidpandemic, the party is facing internal feud in the ruling states of Rajasthanand Punjab. Former Rajasthan Deputy Chief Minister Sachin Pilot has upped theante against Ashok Gehlot, while in Punjab; Navjot Singh Sidhu is targetingChief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh.
Thenew twist to the political saga of the Congress came in Rajasthan when seniorCongress MLA Hemaram Choudhary, who belonged to the Pilot camp, sent hisresignation to Assembly Speaker, while Ved Prakash Solanki, from the same campturned vocal against the government, demanding that power should bedecentralised and the party workers should be given more opportunities.
Solankisaid, "Senior MLAs are not being heard in the present government. HemaramChoudhary has just resigned. A thorough probe should be conducted to find outwhy the senior leader and six-time MLA had to step down."
Solankibelongs to the group of MLAs who under the leadership of Pilot had rebelledagainst the leadership of Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot in July last year.However, the 19 rebel MLAs were re-inducted into the party after seniorCongress leaders stepped in to sort out the matter, including Priyanka GandhiVadra and the late Ahmed Patel.
SachinPilot did not say anything directly but said, Choudhary is most honest andrespected leader hinting that all is not well in the state.
WhileCongress is likely to constitute a committee for Punjab but the committeeformed for Rajasthan has not come out with any amicable solution since thedemise of Ahmed Patel last year. The Pilot camp is getting restless as it'sabout a year when he rebelled only to come back in the party fold, since thenhe is putting pressure on the party to accommodate his loyalists in thegovernment but somehow Gehlot has managed to evade the issue.
Similarlyin Punjab, Sidhu has openly called the disgruntled leaders to go to Delhi andair their grievances to the party leadership. Navjot Singh Sidhu has been training guns at Chief Amarinder Singh over the 2015 sacrilege issue andcalling for party leaders to go to Delhi and raise it with the top leadership,the Congress on Friday said it was seized of the matter and will soon act.
CongressGeneral Secretary, Organisation, K.C. Venugopal said: "We are watching it and will take a call on it" while terming it an "organisationalissue".
Sourcessay that the party is likely to constitute a committee to look into the issuein Punjab, where Assembly elections are due next year.
Cricketer-turned-politicianSidhu, who had been lying low since his resignation from the state Cabinet inJuly 2019, has launched scathing attack this month against the Chief Ministerover his government's action over the alleged desecration of the Guru GranthSahib in 2015 when the Akali Dal-BJP government was in power, and accused himof "shielding the Badals".
Chargingthe Chief Minister with taking action against his own party leaders instead,Sidhu, in a tweet on Thursday, said: "In 2019, I began & ended myElection Campaign in Punjab seeking - Justice for Sacrilege of Guru GranthSahib Ji & punishing the culprits & the ONE shielding them... Now, OurMLAs & Party Workers must go to Delhi & speak the Truth of Punjab toour High Command, as I regularly do."
Ashis attacks on Amarinder Singh saw pushback from other ministers, who demandedhis suspension from the party for indiscipline, Sidhu had urged the ChiefMinister to stop firing from "colleagues' shoulders", and asked"... Who will protect you in court of the Great Guru?"
Takinga tough stance last month, Amarinder Singh had said that if Sidhu "wantsto contest against him, then he is free to do so but that would only lead toSidhu meeting the fate of (former Army chief and Akali Dal candidate) GeneralJ.J. Singh who had lost his security deposit".
Hehad also challenged Sidhu to clearly spell out whether he is a Congress memberor not.