New Delhi, Feb 27 (IANS) Sulking Congress leader Navjot Singh Sidhu met interim party chief Sonia Gandhi here on Wednesday and apprised her of the political situation in Punjab. This is Sidhu’s first big meeting with the Congress central leadership after he quit as minister in the Punjab government over differences with Chief Minister Amarinder Singh.
Sidhu also met Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi. The cricketer-turned-politician had resigned from his post as a Cabinet minister in the state after differences with Amarinder over portfolio allocation. Sidhu was in-charge of local bodies but was shifted to the power department and was miffed over this.
However the tension was simmering between the two leaders when former minister and Sidhu’s wife Navjot Kaur was denied a party ticket for Lok Sabha election, said sources. Kaur was eyeing Chandigarh seat but Pawan Bansal got the ticket.
The meeting is significant as the Chief Minister is due to expand his Cabinet in the next few days or around Holi as the leadership wants to pacify the sulking leaders in the state.
The Chief Minister who has a good rapport with the Gandhis had his say in the state government but of late Sonia Gandhi has constituted a manifesto implementation committee headed by P. Chidambaram and coordination committee headed by state in-charge Asha Kumari.
Punjab gave the best result for the Congress in the Lok Sabha polls and credit has gone to the Chief Minister.
–IANS
miz/kr