Chandigarh: Days after the Gandhis are believed to have led him to quit the post of Punjab chief minister, Captain Amarinder Singh announced that he would leave Congress, saying that he can no longer tolerate ‘humiliation’.
“I have not resigned from the Congress yet, but I will resign very very soon,” he said in an interview to NDTV on Thursday, September 30.
Earlier too, in 1984, Amarinder had left Congress and joined Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), in protest against Army operations at the Golden Temple. Later, breaking away from SAD in 1992, Singh formed a splinter group called the SAD (Panthic) that later merged with the Congress in 1997.
His statement of leaving Congress where he has spent almost 24 years since he rejoined the party comes a day after his meeting with Union home minister and Bharatiya Janata Party leader Amit Shah and National Security Adviser Ajit Doval.
Although the meeting had set off buzz in the national capital, it is not clear whether Amarinder is switching sides as he had said that he is not joining BJP. But even if he enters into a ‘hidden’ pact with BJP, it will not be surprising, given than Captain has a moderate image and a Hindu base as well.
His military background as well as his views on national security have blended with BJP’s politics of nationalism before.
For instance, when the Balakot strike took place in the aftermath of the Pulwama attack in 2019, as Congress sought proof of the strike and announcement of the number of terrorists killed, Captain Amarinder Singh sided with BJP’s narrative by stating that whether one was killed or 100, the right message was sent to Pakistan. After Balakot, BJP came back to power with a thumping majority in 2019 general elections.
During his tenure as CM, there were also allegations by his opponents including Sukhpal Khaira (then AAP MLA who has joined Congress recently) that the Modi government’s National Security Advisor Ajit Doval influenced the appointment of top officers during his government. Khaira refused a statement when contacted for this story.
Even the appointment of Chief Secretary Vini Mahajan and her husband, DGP Dinkar Gupta, who were recently replaced after new CM Charanjit Singh Channi took over, was alleged to have been linked to Doval, even though the Captain, during a press conference last year, denied it.
His recent rant against Sidhu who is believed to be responsible for the fall of his government also utilised the language of hyper-nationalism that the BJP has frequently used.
Amarinder called Sidhu “anti-national, dangerous, unstable, incompetent”. He also sought to highlight to how Sidhu was seen hugging (Pakistan prime minister and his one-time fellow cricket) Imran Khan and (Pakistan Army chief) General Bajwa – three years ago during a trip to that country – and has sung praises for the Pakistan PM at the opening of the Kartarpur corridor while Indian soldiers were being killed at the borders every day.
In a post-resignation letter to Congress president Sonia Gandhi, Amarinder also raised the issue of the challenges of being a chief minister in a border state that “has many geo-political and other internal security concerns, which [he] tried to handle effectively without any compromise.”
Farm laws pose a hurdle
Sources said that BJP leadership is keen on Amarinder’s induction in the party, given that in the Captain, the saffron party will get a famous Sikh face. But the prolonged farmers’ issues continue to pose major hurdles.
BJP has reiterated several times that they are not in favour of repealing the Central farm laws and want to reach middle ground,
But Amarinder’s tweet after meeting with Shah, noting that he has been pushing for the resolution of the crisis with repeal of the laws, indicates that both sides are yet to decide on the rule of engagement.
Although this is a separate matter, his recent statement asking farmers to stop protesting in Punjab and shift agitation to Delhi drew a lot of criticism. Farmers’ unions lashed out at him, calling it a “pro-corporate” line.
Doval
Meanwhile, Amarinder’s meeting with NSA Doval is of great political interest and lends credence to the notion that negotiations are still open between two sides.
Journalist Coomi Kapoor recently wrote in her column ‘Inside Track’ that when Sidhu had joined Congress, Amarinder had turned to BJP’s Arun Jaitley, whom he had defeated in the Amritsar MP elections, for advice. The latter had warned him that Sidhu would undermine him, Kapoor wrote. The Captain was so enraged by Sidhu’s entry into the Congress that he even contemplated floating his own political party if he could forge a tie-up with the BJP. The plan never fructified since the BJP stuck with the Akalis.
As far as Amarinder is concerned, he said in the NDTV interview that he discussed emerging security challenges in Punjab, especially with the smuggling of ammunition through drones through Pakistan with Doval.
“It does not matter than I may not be a chief minister, Punjab will continue to be my priority,” he said in the interview.
Amarinder has been in active politics since 1970. After 51 years in politics, he has limited political options, given the kind of stature he holds and the limited leadership opportunities he can get in other political parties.
Rumours are also rife that Amarinder may float his own party on October 2.
‘Seniors sidelined’
In a reference to the G-23 which has raised its voice in the Congress again, the Captain said the younger leadership should be promoted to implement plans which senior leaders are best equipped to formulate.
“Unfortunately, the seniors were being completely sidelined,” he said, adding this was not good for the party. He also condemned the protests at Kapil Sibal’s house by Congress workers after Sibal expressed views that the Captain said were not palatable to the party leadership.
Expressing the hope that Punjab would vote for the future of the state, he said his experience has showed that the people of Punjab tend to vote for a single party or force, irrespective of the number of parties in the fray. “Mis-governance in Punjab would give Pakistan the opportunity to create trouble in the state and in the country,” he said, stressing that his meeting with NSA Ajit Doval had centred around this issue.
Taking a dig at those who undermine what he said was the growing Pakistani threat in Punjab, he said that such people were playing into the hands of anti-India forces by being in denial mode. “They (Pakistan-backed elements) are killing our soldiers every day, they are pushing weapons into the state through drones. How can we overlook these dangers?” he added.
Reiterating his opinion on Sidhu, Amarinder described him as a “crowd-puller who does not know how to carry his team along.” Pointing out that he had personally worked with many PPCC chiefs, besides himself having been one, the Captain said he had always resolved issues amicably, without indulging in theatrics like Sidhu.
(Courtesy: The Wire)
