Navjot Singh Sidhu -- one of the chief detractors of Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh -- will meet Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra in Delhi tomorrow, his team has said. The cricketer-turned-politician, who has met the three-member committee formed by party chief Sonia Gandhi to resolve the infighting in the Congress ahead of next year's assembly polls, had sought a meeting with the Gandhis.
Amarinder Singh -- grievances against whom has set off the crisis in the state Congress -- was in Delhi last week for a second meeting with the committee. Though his expected meet with the Gandhis did not happen, the party made it clear that he will remain its face in the coming elections.
A resolution of the situation in Punjab may not be possible without getting Mr Sidhu on board.
The 57-year-old -- who is known to be backed by Rahul Gandhi and has a following both in the state and the party -- has been one of the key leaders challenging Mr Singh's leadership in the state.
His frequent criticisms made headlines since the party won the 2017 assembly elections. The most recent flashpoint was Mr Singh's move to give government jobs to the sons of two Congress MLAs on "compassionate" grounds -- Mr Sidhu had accused him of giving jobs to elitist people".
Last week, he said he was ready to work with Mr Singh, but only if the Chief Minister met the promises made to the people before the last assembly elections.
In an interview with the media, Mr Sidhu had lashed out at Mr Singh, questioning, "Who is he to close doors to Navjot Singh Sidhu?"
He also refuted allegations that he damaging the party in one of the few states where it was in power on its own steam. "It is damaging if you address issues like sacrilege? Every MLA is raising this issue. All 78 MLAs are with me," he questioned.
Mr Sidhu, a former BJP man, joined the Congress ahead of the 2017 polls with hopes to get the post of Mr Singh's Deputy. But the Chief Minister had vetoed it, putting him in charge of the irrigation ministry instead. Mr Sidhu stepped down from the post in 2019, and in what was seen as a rebellion, went missing.
The same year, he ran into rough weather with Amarinder Singh after his visit to Pakistan, where images of his hugging the army chief brought huge condemnation at home and upset the Chief Minister, a retired army officer.
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