Navjot Singh Sidhu on Tuesday stepped down as president of the Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee (PPCC), plunging the grand old party into a fresh crisis. Also, Captain Amarinder Singh's ouster from the chief minister's post, just months ahead of the assembly elections in the state, was also considered as a huge political disaster for Congress.
Meanwhile, amid the crisis in Punjab, veteran Congress leader Kapil Sibal on Wednesday attacked the party high command. "In our party, there is no president so we don't know who is taking these decisions. We know & yet we don't know," he was quoted as saying by news agency ANI.
Sibal said Pakistan and ISI can take advantage of the present situation in Punjab. "A border state (Punjab) where this is happening to Congress party means what? It is an advantage to ISI and Pakistan. We know the history of Punjab and the rise of extremism there...Congress should ensure that they remain united." he said.
Sibal, who is among the 23 senior Congress leaders who had sought an organisational overhaul, said: "We (leaders of G-23) are not the ones who will leave the party & go anywhere else. It is ironic. Those who were close to them (party leadership) have left & those whom they don't consider to be close to them are still standing with them." "We are not 'Jee Huzoor 23'. It is very clear. We will keep talking. We will continue to reiterate our demands," he added.
Sibal further said every Congressman should think as to how the party can be strengthened. Those who have left should come back because Congress alone can save this republic, he added.
