Amid intense power struggle within Punjab Congress, Malvinder Singh Mali quit as Punjab Congress chief Navjot Singh Sidhu’s adviser after his controversial remarks created a major row and the party threatened to dismiss him if Sidhu failed to remove him.
Mali had invited the ire of the State party affairs’ general secretary in-charge Harish Rawat as well as the Congress high command over his views on Article 370 and Kashmir, and a sketch of former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi terming her a “tormentor”.
After he refused to withdraw the posts, Sidhu was advised by Rawat to sack Mali. Sidhu had, however, dug his heels in. Rawat had even gone public in an interview to a private TV channel in saying that if Sidhu did not sack such advisers, he would do so himself.
Eventually, Mali quit as advisor to Punjab Congress president — announcing the same on Facebook
The power struggle between Amarinder and the Sidhu is intensifying with each passing day — forcing the party high command to finally rein in the cricketer-turned-politician after giving him enough liberty despite his diatribe against his own party’s government and the Chief Minister.
While Opposition parties are gearing up for the 2022 polls, the both factions are engaged in ‘show of strength’ to outdo on one-another. On Thursday night, Cabinet Minister Rana Gurmeet Singh Sodhi threw a dinner party claiming that 59 legislators and eight MPs among others attended the same, and exhibited confidence in Capt Amarinder’s leadership.
The development assumes significance as the Sidhu camp had, the previous week, claimed that 34 MLAs did not have faith in the Chief Minister’s leadership and wanted him to be replaced. In a major embarrassment to Sidhu camp, no less than nine leaders claimed not to be part of the meeting against the Chief Minister.
On Friday, Capt Amarinder met the former Chief Minister Rajinder Kaur Bhattal - apparently to fortify his support.
Only recently, the state party affairs’ general secretary in-charge Harish Rawat made it clear to Sidhu that he has only been appointed Congress president and not given the responsibility of the entire Congress party. “We have given the party leadership to Sidhu, not the Congress to him,” he said on moves to change the Chief Minister ahead of the Assembly polls slated in early 2022. Besides, Rawat had also snubbed the ‘dissident’ Ministers and MLAs, who met him in Dehradun, seeking Capt Amarinder’s ouster declaring that the veteran Congress leader would lead the party in 2022 polls.