Congress's Priyanka Gandhi Vadra broke her silence on the Captain Amarinder Singh government in Punjab today, saying it was "changed" as it was "being run by the BJP from the centre".
Without naming Amarinder Singh - a longtime loyalist of the Gandhi family - Priyanka Gandhi said, "We knew something was going wrong. Hence we changed the leadership".
"We got Charanjit Singh Channi, who is one among you. He knows and feels your issues," added the senior Congress leader, while campaigning in Punjab today.
This is the first time either of the Gandhi siblings - who all along backed Navjot Sidhu through his rebellion against Amarinder Singh - broke their silence on the change of guard in Punjab.
Amarinder Singh stepped down from the top post in September last year. Later, he formed his own party, the Punjab Lok Congress, and is contesting the state elections in alliance with the BJP.
In his no-holds barred resignation letter, Amarinder Singh had made a series of accusations against the Gandhis.
The former Chief Minister -- associated with the Congress for nearly four decades - had said Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi, instead of reining in Navjot Sidhu - "an unstable individual" and "an acolyte of the Pakistani deep state" - had patronised him.
Sonia Gandhi, he said, had "turned a blind eye" to the "shenanigans of this gentleman who was aided and abetted by the General Secretary in-charge Harish Rawat, perhaps the most dubious individual I had the occasion to make acquaintance off (sic)".
Invoking former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, Amarinder Singh wrote that he has felt "deeply hurt by your conduct and that of your children who l still deeply love as much as my own children, having known their father, since we were in school together since 1954...".
The Gandhis had not responded to the allegations at the time. Neither had they named Mr Sidhu the chief ministerial candidate of Punjab. Last week, Mr Channi was named the candidate after getting people's feedback on the matter through a tele-poll.
Debutant Priyanka Gandhi Wins Wayanad By Bigger Margin Than Brother Rahul Gandhi BJP Flags Waved At Priyanka Gandhi During Nagpur Roadshow. She Did This 'Wayanad AQI 35, Delhi Like Gas Chamber': Priyanka Gandhi's Toxic Air Post "Moving Towards One Party, One Nation": Uddhav Thackeray On BJP Victory After Mega Maharashtra Victory, NDA's Oath Ceremony Likely Tomorrow Delhi Cop Stops 3 Men During Patrol, They Kill Him. Then A Manhunt Begins ICSE, ISC Exam Datesheet 2025 For Class 10, 12 To Be Released Soon Islamabad Under Lockdown Ahead Of Massive Protest For Imran Khan's Release Uttarakhand: 186-Year-Old President's House To Open For Visitors Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world.