The All India Congress Committee (AICC) has called a meeting of the state's Congress Legislative Party, today at 5pm on September 18 at Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee office. Tweeted Punjab Congress in-charge Harish Rawat: "The AICC has received a representation from a large number of MLAs from the Congress party, requesting to immediately convene a meeting of the Congress Legislative Party of Punjab. Accordingly, a meeting of the CLP has been convened at 5:00pm on September 18 at Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee office. AICC directs the PPCC to facilitate this meeting. All Congress MLAs of Punjab are requested to kindly attend this meeting."
The curious timing of the tweet, around midnight, is telling. Also, there are speculations that this could lead to a change of guard in the state, with MLAs feeling anti-incumbency burden and sensing Chief Minister Amarinder is losing popularity. It is learnt that the party high command has sought the resignation of Amarinder. He has conveyed to party leaders that it is now difficult for him to "put up with the humiliation". There are also doubts over whether Amarinder will attend the CLP meet. According to sources, the party's decision to seek replacement for the chief minister was guided by former party chief Rahul Gandhi. The names doings the rounds to replace Amarinder are: Sunil Jakhar, Partap Singh Bajwa, both former PCC presidents, and Lok Sabha MP Ravneet Bittu.
Earlier, Rawat made the frank admission that “all is not well” in the party's state unit, torn apart as it is by the power tussle between Amarinder and PCC president Navjot Singh Sidhu. What was left unsaid and what has been discussed behind closed doors as Rawat tries to douse fires in Punjab Congress is the uncertainty amongst the MLAs about their fate as they deal with anti-incumbency not just against the government but also against themselves. Many fear that they may not be nominated again and this concern is influencing their decisions.
When Sidhu was appointed PCC chief over a month ago, there was a sense of euphoria among the MLAs. They were hopeful of the cricketer-turned-politician transforming the scenario for them with his popularity and his anti-establishment stance. They had no qualms being in the same frame as the cricketer-turned-politician as they were aware that Sidhu enjoyed the backing of the party's central leadership.
The recent open rebellion against Amarinder Singh is understood to have been fuelled by the fear amongst a section of the MLAs that they would not be renominated. They also fear that the chief minister, who controls the resources and the official paraphernalia, is trying to make matters more difficult for them in their constituencies, especially after they were identified as supporting Sidhu. They are learnt to have complained to the party high command of administrative issues at the grassroots level, such as having to deal with a non-cooperative officialdom, not allowed to have officials of their choice in their areas and even paucity of government funds for developmental works.
According to a Punjab Congress leader, the meeting of over 30 legislators, where, according to leaders belonging to the Sidhu camp, a call was made for replacement of Amarinder Singh as chief minister, was the result of the growing uncertainty amongst the MLAs and ministers, and a feeling that those who were identified as supporting Sidhu were being targeted by the CM.
-Inputs from Soni Mishra
