The grand old Congress in Punjab is gearing up to fight 2014 lok Sabha polls with its foot soldiers raising a banner of revolt against their own general.
State Congress chief Partap Singh Bajwa’s “much-awaited” office bearers list of the Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee (PPCC) has opened a can of worms. Almost everyday, after the list was released on December 27, the party is witnessing one or the other party leader expressing displeasure over the names included and left out from the list.
After former Union Minister and MP Ashwani Kumar, former Minister and sitting Kharar MlA Jagmohan Singh Kang, State Mahila Congress chief Malti Thapar, former Forest Minister and sitting MlA from Fatehgarh Churian, and many others who opposed the newly-constituted body, the latest in the line giving vent to their ire are nothing less than 10 senior Congressmen from Moga.
The leaders, creating a rift of sorts within the party, have been openly airing their discontentment over the PPCC, alleging Bajwa of adopting the ways of “nepotism”, “poor representation” and “betraying” those supported the party, and especially him. On Thursday, around 10 senior Congress leaders from Moga, including Vijay Sathi, Jagdarshan Kaur and Tara Singh Sandhu, decided to resign from the State executive, and have already sent their resignation to the party high command.
Only a day before, three-time MlA and sitting legislator from Fatehgarh Churian Tripit Rajinder Singh Bajwa announced to have resigned from the jumbo-sized executive committee of the newly-set up Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee (PPCC). Though he faxed his resignation letter to the Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee (PPCC) office on December 29, he made his decision public on Wednesday.
Before him, Kang had threatened to from the post of PPCC general secretary maintaining that he was “not given his due place in the body by ignoring his seniority and merit in the party”. “I have sought an appointment with the Congress president Sonia Gandhi and vice-president Rahul Gandhi to tender my resignation from the post,” Kang told The Pioneer.
He maintained that Bajwa “humiliated” him by appointing as general secretary after his standing of 39 years in the party, while “many defectors and new entrants have been given undue recognition in the new set-up and many genuine and sincere workers and leaders were not adequately adjusted due to misrepresentation of facts by Bajwa to the party high command”.
Punjab Pardesh Mahila Congress president Malti Thapar had already shot off a letter to Rahul Gandhi and AICC general secretary Shakeel Ahmed accusing Bajwa of completely ignoring the due representation of women candidates in the list. Rajya Sabha MP Ashwani Kumar had also openly taken on Bajwa alleging favouritism in the committee. Another senior party leader from Sunam, Aman Arora, had resigned as executive member of the PPCC alleging that Congressmen, who “back-stabbed” the party were “rewarded” with positions in the committee.
Many Congress leaders in ludhiana too complained of being “ignored”, and are planning to give up their membership in the coming days. The list seems endless so far.
The 320-member list has the names of 14 leaders as vice-presidents — including the four regional heads appointed earlier, along with 35 general secretaries, one treasurer, 61 secretaries, and whooping 148 executive members, and 33 permanent invitees including MPs, and senior Congress leaders — including Congress legislative Party (ClP) leader Sunila Jakhar, former Chief Ministers Capt Amarinder Singh, Rajinder Kaur Bhattal, among others.
Notwithstanding, the “please-all” list of PPCC, it has failed to satisfy many. Raising many eyebrows, the list has caused further bickering within the already divided party unit. With all this going on in Punjab, the party’s state general secretary in-charge Shakeel Ahmad is unaware of the troubles that follow.
“I am not informed about anything in this connection as such by the state unit. But, I will take up this issue as soon as possible,” he said when The Pioneer contacted him. The new PPCC has decided to meet on January 6 to prepare the strategy for the lok Sabha polls. But with a series of resignations flowing in, and many seeking appointments with the party high command, that too when the lok Sabha polls are just few months away, it’s not good news for the Congress.