Punjab Congress president Sunil Jakhar
There is resentment among Congress leaders in Punjab post AICC president Rahul Gandhi’s rejig of the Congress Working Committee (CWC) on Tuesday. Despite expanding the body and taking 51 leaders on board, the exclusion of state unit leaders is being seen as a snub by the party president.
A number of leaders The Indian Express spoke to said that ever since the rejig, disappointment has gripped some state unit leaders, “Everything looks fine on the surface. Just scratch a little but and you will know how disappointed they are,” said a Cabinet minister on anonymity.
Punjab Congress president Sunil Jakhar, however, asked, “How is Punjab unrepresented? We have Ambika Soni on the list. She contested from Anandpur Sahib and she belongs to Punjab. Also, the Chief Minister is an ex-officio member of CWC.”
But others said that Punjab had been ignored, adding that the fact that Rahul Gandhi had taken four leaders from neighbouring Haryana in the list had added insult to the injury. “We too have many leaders. Several of them are considered very close to Rahul Gandhi. They all were also disappointed. It is definitely a reflection on what the party president thinks about us, our government and our unit as a whole. Otherwise, how come he could not even think of a single leader,” said another minister.
He added every day reports of lack of cohesiveness in the state unit had reached Rahul Gandhi. “A few days ago PPCC president Sunil Jakhar had held eight meetings with Congress workers in Bathinda, Budhlada, Mansa and Maur….The disenchantment of party workers was so much that they even refused to be face of the party in the field in upcoming Lok Sabha elections. Do you think all this did not reach Rahul Gandhi when general secretary incharge Asha Kumari and Secretary Harish Choudhary were witness to such angst shown by party workers. They even said they were better off during SAD-BJP regime. At least public did not hold them responsible for the misgovernance,” the minister added.
Another party leader, on anonymity said, Rahul Gandhi’s treatment of Punjab was a writing on the wall. “We knew this was coming. There are so many written complaints being sent to him by the party workers from here that he cannot be happy at the turn of events.”
A few old Congress hands are, however, elated that Local Bodies Minister Navjot Singh Sidhu and Finance Minister Manpreet Singh Badal too are not in the list, “We keep getting reports that they are favourites with Rahul Gandhi. Badal was on Rahul Gandhi’s list of organisers of AICC plenary session. We always hear Sidhu has direct access to the party president. But their exclusion from the list is also a message.”
Harish Choudhary, AICC Secretary, also insisted Soni was the choice from Punjab. “There is nothing to read in the list for Punjab. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP chief Amit Shah from the same state. Do you make that a controversy?” he asked.