Amarinder's exit will not affect the party: Congress
Darpan News Desk IANS, 20 Oct, 2021 10:58 AM
New Delhi, Oct 20 (IANS) Congress leaders on Wednesday said the exit of senior party leader and former Punjab chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh -- who announced forming a new party -- will not affect the prospects of the Congress.
The issue was up for deliberation on Wednesday during the meeting between the party leaders and former Congress president Rahul Gandhi and Congress' Punjab in-charge Harish Rawat.
The Congress is currently preparing an estimation of the number of leaders who are likely to quit.
However, sources say that people close to Singh are unlikely to quit the party.
The Congress leaders are watching his moves ahead of the new party formation and sources say that all the Congress members have distanced themselves after he worked out a "patch up formula" with the BJP.
Congress' Punjab in-charge Harish Rawat said "his decision will not make any difference to Congress".
"The party's performance will depend on the work of the new chief minister (Charanjit Singh Channi), and he is doing well," Rawat added.
Talking about Amarinder Singh, the former Uttarakhand chief minister said "it seems that he has killed the secular Amarinder within him... and how can he forgive the BJP for keeping the farmers on Delhi borders since the last one year."
The Punjab unit has been asked to keep an eye on the movements of the rebels and to pacify them ahead of the elections and dissuade them from joining the former Chief Minister.
Punjab Deputy Chief Minister Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa said "we have no fear... if Amarinder goes with the BJP, there must be some pressure on him."
Amarinder Singh on Tuesday said that he would soon announce the launch of his own political party to serve the interests of the people, including the farmers who have been fighting for their rights for almost a year now.
He said that he is hopeful of a seat-sharing arrangement with the BJP for next year's Assembly elections in the state, if the farmers' issues are resolved in their interest.
In a series of tweets, his media advisor Raveen Thukral quoted Amarinder Singh as saying: "The battle for Punjab's future is on. Will soon announce the launch of my own political party to serve the interests of Punjab and its people, including our farmers who've been fighting for their survival for over a year."
At a virtual Covid-19 review meeting, the Chief Minister said vaccine effectiveness is evident from the data being analysed. Special efforts were made to reach out to the government employees, and those who continue to avoid getting vaccinated will now be asked to go on leave till they get the first dose.
DGP Dinkar Gupta said with the case load decreasing, people had started being lax about wearing masks, which the Health Department should strictly enforce with the help of the police.
Additional Chief Secretary Devendra Singh and Deputy Commissioner of Karnal Nishant Yadav are participating in the meeting. From the farmers side, BKU president Gurunam Singh Chaduni and the state leadership will present their demands.
Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) leader Balbir Singh Rajewal told the media here after the day-long deliberations with the political parties, except the BJP, that they had told the political parties not to hold big rallies till elections in the state are announced.
Naqvi further stated that the long-pending demand of Kartarpur Corridor has been fulfilled and the government has also decided to start the 'Gurudwara circuit train' that will take passengers on a pilgrimage across the country.
