Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi and Congress leader Navjot Singh Sidhu, often at loggerheads, made a public show of unity in an announcement that they will work with each other and fight the upcoming polls together. This came amid a meeting of party MLAs, in the presence of senior Congress leader and Punjab affairs in-charge Harish Chaudhary.
The disunity in the Punjab Congress was evident for the past few weeks, exacerbated by colleague-turned-rival Amarinder Singh's claims that many people from the Congress were in touch with him.
Most recently, Sidhu hit out at politicians who offered "lollipops" just ahead of polls, in an apparent attack on his own party-led government in the state, and urged people to vote only on the agenda of Punjab's welfare. His remarks came on a day when CM Channi announced slashing of the power tariff by Rs 3 per unit for the domestic sector, and increasing the dearness allowance for government employees. In retaliation, Channi is reported to have put on hold the resignation of Punjab Advocate General A.P.S. Deol, a long-held demand of the Sidhu faction.
"All is well," Sidhu told reporters after the meeting.
Congress MLA Navtej Singh Cheema said Channi and Sidhu shared their experiences about fighting elections. In the meeting, all the party leaders decided to fight the polls unitedly, said Cheema, adding that the meeting was held in a congenial atmosphere.
-Inputs from agencies
