Aman Sood

Tribune News Service

Patiala, July 18

After almost over two decades, the power centre in the Congress citadel of Patiala held firmly by Capt Amarinder Singh and wife MP Preneet Kaur suddenly seems to have shifted from their official residence of New Moti Bagh to the Yadavindra Colony-based new PCC chief Navjot Sidhu’s parental house.

In the past three days, over three dozen MLAs and former and present MPs have met him, in a clear signal that the corridors of power have shifted from the palace to the colony, named after the ancestors of Capt Amarinder.

“Over 30 MLAs met Sidhu on Saturday and the last time so many leaders visited the city was when Capt Amarinder held lunch diplomacy meetings in run-up to the 2017 polls. This is enough to show that political shift is not inevitable,” said a second generation Congressman from the old city. While the local Congress unit has been maintaining distance from Sidhu, claiming they are with Preneet Kaur, Ghanaur MLA Madan Lal Jalalpur — considered close to Preneet — today hosted Sidhu and Cabinet minister Sukhjinder Randhawa who played a key role for bringing Jalalpur on board. The recent visits by senior leaders to meet Sidhu at his residence seem to be changing political equations.

Shutrana MLA Nirmal Singh was the other Patiala leader to have met Sidhu.

A senior Congress leader said since there was nobody at Moti Bagh Palace, all leaders were meeting Sidhu. “But we are still united under Captain. There is no shifting of power centres in Patiala or elsewhere,” he said.