NEW DELHI: Former Punjab Congress president Sunil Jakhar quitting the party on a day it is holding ‘Nav Sankalp Chintan Shivir’ at Udaipur is not the only setback to it. The rebel leader has received support from an unlikely quarter - his bete noire Navjot Singh Sidhu, who had succeeded him as the state unit chief.
In a Facebook post titled ‘Dil ki Bat’ on Saturday, Jakhar bid adieu to Congress saying “... Good luck and goodbye Congress”.
Soon after Jakhar quit, he received support from Sidhu who, in a tweet, said, “The congress should not loose #sunilkjakhar …. Is an asset worth his weight in gold …. Any differences can be resolved on the table”
This was a double setback for the Congress on a day it discussed internal reforms and unity in the party during the Chintan Shivir.
The Congress disciplinary committee on April 26 had recommended Jakhar’s suspension for two years for alleged anti-party activities. He had criticised former chief minister Charanjit Singh Channi, terming him a liability for the party after Congress lost to Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in this year's Punjab assembly election.
Jakhar, who was once considered a probable chief ministerial candidate, remained unmoved with the recommendation of action against him.
Finally, he quit on Saturday.
What is surprising is that even though he was a bitter critic of Sidhu, the latter has come out in his support.
On several occasions in the past, Jakhar targetted Sidhu along with other Congress leaders. He used to call Sidhu “predictably unpredictable”.
He confronted Sidhu when the latter objected to former Punjab chief minister Charanjit Singh Channi’s choice of DGP and advocate general (AG). He told Sidhu that it was the prerogative of the CM to appoint DGP or AG and he was undermining the CM's authority by forcing his choice.
When Channi finally succumbed to Sidhu’s demand and accepted the resignation of both AG APS Deol and DGP IPS Sahota, Jakhar said: “The ouster of a competent yet 'allegedly' compromised officer has exposed a 'really' compromised CM. Giving rise to a pertinent question - Whose government is it anyway?”
Jakhar maintained that fights between Sidhu and Channi were harming Congress and helping the opposition parties.
Targeting Sidhu, he once said, “Progress is not happening because the intentions are evil.”
He did not shy away from calling Channi, Sidhu and Congress’s former Punjab in-charge Harish Singh Rawat as “political pilgrims”.
However, despite these attacks from Jakhar, Sidhu has not agreed to the Congress’s action against him. This should be a cause of worry for the party.
Sidhu had recently met Punjab chief minister Bhagwant Singh Mann of Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and praised him. This has already caused discomfort in Congress circles.
