Amidst the ongoing crisis in Punjab Congress, once again questions are being raised on the central leadership of the party. Senior Congress leader Kapil Sibal on Wednesday expressed displeasure over the party’s performance and said it was ironic that only those considered close to the high command left him and others were still standing. The leader involved in the G-23 said that the party will have to listen to the leaders and introspect. At a time when the party is facing a crisis in Punjab, he said, “the work of democracy cannot be done by 20 people sitting at the Centre.”
Kapil Sibal said that the party has no president at present and hence he does not know who is taking these decisions. He said, “I believe that one of my senior colleagues has probably written or is going to write to the Congress President to call the CWC immediately to discuss why we are in this situation?” Meanwhile, senior Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad has reportedly written a letter to Sonia Gandhi asking her to convene an immediate meeting of the CWC.
Sibal said that the G-23 will take up the issues that need attention. He said, “It is very clear. We are G-23, not Huzoor 23. We will keep talking. We will keep repeating our demands.”
Sibal’s remarks come at a time when Punjab Congress is internally divided into factions and a new drama is emerging every day. After Captain Amarinder Singh resigned from the CM post, which did not happen amicably, Charanjit Singh Channi was elected as the Chief Minister.
After this Channi’s new cabinet was sworn in and only a few months before the elections, Punjab Congress President Navjot Singh Sidhu has resigned from his post. Sidhu expressed dissatisfaction over the division of portfolios by Charanjit Singh Channi.
“When the time came to fight, then…”
On the other hand, these statements of Sibal started showing displeasure among other party leaders as well. Indian Youth Congress National President Srinivas Biwi made a tweet taunting Sibal.
Srinivas wrote, “Listen ji-huzoor:- The “President” and “Leadership” of the party is the one who always took you to Parliament, made you a “Minister” in good times of the party, if you were in opposition, then took you to Rajya Sabha, good – Always rewarded with responsibilities in bad times.. And when the “time” of struggle came, then…”
“Pakistan-ISI will benefit from Punjab Congress crisis”
Sibal said, “I don’t want to talk about Punjab, but a border state where this is happening to the Congress party, what does it mean? It’s an advantage for ISI and Pakistan. We look at the history of Punjab and there. We know the rise of extremism… we know how forces from across the border take advantage of the situation to create an atmosphere of uncertainty.”
He further said, “These forces are the biggest threat to the country. Congress should ensure that they remain united. If anyone has any problem, it should be discussed.”
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