Chandigarh:
Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh has reached out to the Hindu leaders of the party with a luncheon meet today. Around 20 leaders are attending the meet, which comes a day after the central leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra met Navjot Sidhu and are suspected to have arrived at a peace formula. It is not known yet what the arrangement is, but there has been talk of a reshuffle in the party's state unit ahead of the elections.
The three-member panel formed by Congress chief Sonia Gandhi to resolve the Punjab Congress infighting, had suggested that Mr Sidhu be given a role in the party structure. But Mr Singh had not agreed to it.
The names of two leaders attending today's lunch – MP Manish Tewari and education minister Vijay Inder Singla -- are doing the rounds for the post of party's state president. Both enjoy Mr Singh's patronage. Mr Tewari got the ticket for the Anandpur Sahib Lok Sabha seat on the Chief Minister's insistence.
While Mr Sidhu is seen as a key dissenter who has contributed to the crisis in the party's state unit, even a section of Hindu leaders are said to be unhappy with the Chief Minister because they feel sidelined in the party.
One of them, former Batala MLA Ashwani Sekhri, has criticised the Chief Minister in recent weeks over the state's handling of the Covid pandemic.
Last week, he was about to join the Shiromani Akali Dal but opted out at the last minute after the CM and other party leaders talked to him. Party sources said Mr Sekhri was upset. He felt ignored and politically marginalised ever since the Congress government was formed.
A section of leaders in the party have been up in arms against the Chief Minister and sought a change in leadership, suggesting that his government's failure to fulfil the Congress manifesto has upset the voters, who will remember it during next year's state elections.
The three-member Central panel has suggested that before the state polls next year, the Chief Minister should also take corrective measures -- especially in reducing power bills, dealing with sand and transport mafia.