Farmers Movement Archive

Opposition joins forces to hit out at Congress over infighting in Punjab

Captain Amarinder Singh’s resignation as Punjab chief minister is an admission by the Congress that it failed to perform and has nothing to show for its tenure of over four-and-a-half years, said Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president Sukhbir Singh Badal on Saturday, as opposition parties mounted an attack on the ruling Congress.Declaring that he felt humiliated, Singh on Saturday resigned as chief minister of Punjab, capping a months-long power tussle between him and Navjot Singh Sidhu, who was recently made state party president much against the senior leader’s wishes. Over 50 Congress MLAs had written to party president Sonia Gandhi, seeking that Singh is replaced as chief minister.In a statement, Akali chief Badal said: “The Congress party cannot hope to save its incompetent government and befool Punjabis with a mere change of face.”The Congress high command’s ploy to avert a backlash against the party by putting the blame on one person will not succeed, he added. “Punjabis know that the entire Congress party in Punjab is known for open loot and lawlessness. Its ministers and MLAs patronized gangsters. Its ministers looted the State exchequer of thousands of crores. It failed to undertake any development or infrastructure projects in the State”.Joining the chorus, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) called on the people of Punjab to choose it in the elections early next year, saying that it alone can give the state a stable and progressive government. “The Congress in Punjab is licking the dust to revive itself,” said  BJP general secretary Tarun Chugh.Terming Singh’s resignation a “panic reaction” of the Congress high command to salvage the party’s situation, Chugh said that the Congress would be decimated in the forthcoming assembly elections and no fire-fighting of any kind can help it. “The mafia raj of the Congress in Punjab would prove to be the last nail in its coffin in Punjab,” he added. Union minister and BJP MP from Punjab Som Prakash said the resignation of Singh clearly shows that Congress is desperate as it is losing its position with every passing day. “Congress is in decline, Akalis have lost the trust of people, so we are hopeful that people of Punjab will give the opportunity to BJP which can give a stable and progressive government in the state,” Prakash said.The BJP which had been contesting elections in Punjab in alliance with the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) has only two MLAs in the 117-member assembly and two MPs from the state. The SAD snapped its alliance with the BJP last year over the Centre’s three contentious farm laws.Reacting to the news of Singh’s resignation, Omar Abdullah of the Jammu and Kashmir National Conference wondered about the nationwide impact of the Congress’s moves in Punjab.  “I guess it’s too much to expect the Congress to take the fight to the BJP when its state leaders are too busy fighting amongst themselves,” he said In a series of tweets.“Ordinarily I wouldn’t give a toss about the fratricide in the Congress party - their party, their business. However what the Congress does has a direct fallout for every political party outside the NDA orbit because almost 200 Lok Sabha seats see a direct BJP-Cong fight,” he added.

Hindustan Times

19-09-2021

India