All isn’t well with Punjab Congress, trying to end crisis: Harish Rawat

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, September 2

Hours before winding up his two-day Chandigarh visit aimed at ending infighting in the state party unit, Punjab affairs in charge and AICC general secretary Harish Rawat said: “I will not say all is well, but we are heading towards it.”

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After briefing the high command, Rawat is expected to make another visit to Chandigarh.

Summing up his observation on the state of affairs in the Punjab Congress, Rawat, before flying back in the state helicopter to Dehradun in the afternoon, said: “When there is a complicated pregnancy, an expert midwife is always required. That is what I am doing.”

Veiled attack on warring factions

• Punjab affairs in charge Harish Rawat says the biggest losers in the ongoing tussle between the warring factions would be the leaders currently in powerful positions
• “Both must understand that they have to come in one frame for their benefit. For one it is a challenge at the present and for the other the political future is at stake,” he adds

In a veiled reference to CM Capt Amarinder Singh, PCC chief Navjot Singh Sidhu and dissident ministers, he said the biggest losers in the ongoing tussle between the warring factions would be the leaders currently in powerful positions.“Both must understand that they have to come in one frame for their benefit. For one it is a challenge at the present and for the other the political future is at stake,” Rawat said.

On the infighting in the state unit, he said the party believed in democratic setup and there were ways to solve the differences. He clarified that at the yesterday’s meeting with Capt Amarinder, the discussion centred on the implementation of the 18-point agenda handed down by the high command.

The main focus of the discussion was the implementation of the five-point agenda handed over by the PCC chief to the CM during a recent meeting between the two. “Work is being done on the concerns raised by party leaders and some positive pro-people developments,” he said.

“The state party chief is doing his part. During my recent meeting with him, he told me about the progress made on the recast of the PCC. I talked to him today also, but he did not complain about anything,” Rawat stressed.

Rawat today met ministers Gurpreet Kangar and Aruna Chaudhary, MLAs Kuljeet Nagra, Amrinder Raja Warring, Kaka Randeep Nabha, Sarkar Kaur, Dr Raj Kumar Verka, and Punjab Youth Congress president Barinder Dhillon — who sought an early solution to the crisis. However, dissident ministers Sukhjinder Randhawa, Tript Rajinder Bajwa, Sukhbinder Sarkaria and Charanjit Channi kept away. They are learnt to be miffed at Rawat over not airing their concerns with the party high command.