Farmers Movement Archive

Based on a ground survey in Punjab, Congress devises a compromise formula

Amid the ongoing power tussle in Punjab, the Congress conducted a ground survey to gauge the mood of the people in the state ahead of the assembly election next year, party functionaries aware of the development said. It covered both the functioning of the state government and organisational issues.The survey, conducted in three rounds last month to cover party workers and common people, has come at a time there is intense speculation about former cricketer-turned-politician Navjot Singh Sidhu’s possible role in the Congress, with a section of the party claiming that he could be the next chief of Punjab Congress.While the party leaders are tight-lipped about the results of the survey, two functionaries said that it showed Sidhu enjoys some support, especially among the young voters and party workers. “He is no pushover,” said a party leader refusing to be identified.The Congress is all set to fight elections under the leadership of chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh, the party’s most prominent and popular face in the poll-bound state. But the survey, according to the two functionaries, also indicated that a section of the party has some misgivings — arising from the belief that bureaucrats have been empowered at the cost of politicians, that promises made in the run up to the 2017 elections have not been met, and that the chief minister is soft on the Shiromani Akali Dal’s Badals.Punjab, the only north Indian state ruled by the Congress, goes to polls early next year. Earlier, it looked like the party had an upper hand in the state after the Akali Dal left the National Democratic Alliance over its differences with the Bharatiya Janata Party over the three farm laws that triggered massive resentment among farmers. But the internal squabbles, the lingering tension between Singh and Sidhu might cast a shadow over the party’s prospects, say analysts.The Congress, however, is hopeful of finding an amicable solution after Sidhu met both Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra while Singh came to meet Congress president Sonia Gandhi in Delhi Sidhu is believed to be in Delhi today (July 16) to meet with Sonia Gandhi. An announcement resolving the Punjab crisis is expected later in the day.Another party leader said on condition of anonymity that the Punjab survey is not extraordinary as the party’s data analytics team conducts regular surveys in different states. A similar ground survey was conducted in Maharashtra before Nana Patole was made its state unit chief.Surveys are now being conducted in Goa, West Bengal and Uttarakhand, while those in Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh and Tamil Nadu have finished recently, he added.

Hindustan Times

19-07-2021

India