Captain-Shah meeting sets off speculations on Singh's likely perching onto BJP fold; Cong says Shah is desperate
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New Delhi: Amid the conundrum within Punjab Congress due to internal feud over power struggle, the meeting of former Punjab Chief Minister and veteran Congress leader Captain Amarinder Singh with the Union Minister and BJP leader Amit Shah yesterday intensified speculation of Singh's likely perching onto BJP fold.
Though Singh tweeted that the meeting had nothing to do with his personal interest but was on farmers' prolonged agitation, the Congress party has taken it in a different view and lashed at the Union Minister accusing him of fishing in the troubled waters.
"Met Union Home Minister @AmitShah Ji in Delhi. Discussed the prolonged farmers' agitation against #FarmLaws & urged him to resolve the crisis urgently with the repeal of the laws & guarantee MSP, besides supporting Punjab in crop diversification," Singh's tweet read.
Captain Amarinder Singh was asked to step down as the CM by the Congress party's high command ahead of the State Assembly elections to be held next year over internal frictions among some of the MLAs and former state party chief, Navjot Singh Sidhu.
Since the senior leader has more than four decades of acquaintance with the national party and is the party's credible face in Punjab, the high command's decision left him to feel hurt and being isolated in the party, and he also said he would look for options.
Reports also suggest that Amarinder Singh has planned to meet some of the Congress's 'G23', the group of 23 senior Congress leaders who wrote to party president Sonia Gandhi a year ago seeking an overhaul.
Despite Singh's ruffle with the Congress, he remains with the party. The BJP government that is seen no rush in resolving the farmers' agitation demanding the repeal of the three controversial farm laws, hopes Singh's involvement could help to further push the stalled discussion with the agitating farmers.
Ahead of the Punjab Assembly elections next year, the BJP is also said to be keen to rope in Singh. But any political negotiation seems to hinge around the contentious farm laws – the BJP is facing protests from a large section of the farming community in Punjab on the issue.
Meanwhile, senior Congress leader and party spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala tweeted that Amit Shah was not happy seeing a Dalit being inducted as CM of Punjab.
"The arrogance of the abbot sitting in power has been hurt," his tweet reads. "Because if a Dalit is made the Chief Minister, they ask who is making decisions in the Congress? They do not like the top position being given to a Dalit. The centre of anti-Dalit politics is located in Amit Shah's residence," read his tweet in Hindi.