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Punjab Congress needs to rescue itself from Amarinder, Bajwa. And fast

Charu Kartikeya | Updated on: 13 February 2017, 5:13 IST
QUICK PILL

Wide split

  • The Punjab Congress is riven by factionalism
  • Partap Singh Bajwa is ranged against Amarinder Singh
  • It bodes ill for the party with less than 2 years to go for polls

Patch-up job

  • Bajwa may be removed as state Congress president
  • Amarinder wants the job but doesn\'t have a stellar record
  • Ambika Soni may be imposed as a compromise candidate

Over two years after he was brought in to lead the Congress in Punjab, Partap Singh Bajwa is staring at the exit.

Reason: a turf war with his predecessor Amarinder Singh has riven the party, threatening to derail its preparations for the 2017 assembly election.

In recent days, he has alleged that Amarinder is set to leave the party along with a sizable number of his supporters. The former chief minister has hit back by calling Bajwa "incompetent and a failure".

The Congress realises that it has to end the rift soon, but that's no easy task. If Bajwa is removed, will the reins again be handed over to Amarinder?

This is a big dilemma for the party, for Amarinder's record as leader doesn't inspire any more confidence than Bajwa's does.

Out of options

On Amarinder's watch, first as CM and then as party chief, the Congress lost successive assembly elections in 2007 and 2012, while Bajwa lost panchayat and municipal elections in 2013 and 2015, respectively.

In between, in 2014, the party lost 10 of its 13 Lok Sabha seats from Punjab. The three wins included Amarinder's rather surprise victory over BJP bigwig Arun Jaitley in Amritsar. It's that triumph that his supporters are now holding up to make a case for his return as leader.

Manish Tewari, a UPA minister who lost his Ludhiana seat in 2014, recently called Amarinder a "natural leader" and said "he can deliver the state" to the Congress in 2017.

On Amarinder's watch, the Congress lost the successive assembly elections in 2007 and 2012

This is quite a turnaround for the Captain, who not long ago was reviled by party workers and leaders alike. In the run up to the 2012 polls, he was accused of being inaccessible.

Then as now, the state Congress was divided and Amarinder was widely held responsible. Then, he was ranged against former PCC chief Rajinder Kaur Bhattal. So deep was the rift that both factions reportedly propped up rebels to challenge the party's candidates perceived to belong to the rival camp.

Complacency was seen as another reason for the loss in 2012. The Congress leadership was under the impression that there was anti-incumbency against the BJP-SAD government which would automatically benefit from the party. The result came as a shock.

A fresh start

This time too, Congress leaders are again talking up anti-incumbency. The party, however, won't be able to encash it without ending the factionalism.

Besides, the Aam Aadmi Party has emerged as the new disruptive factor in Punjab politics, having won four seats in the parliamentary election last year. Although its mettle is yet to be tested in assembly polls, the party's rallies are drawing huge crowds.

Amarinder enjoys a stature in the Congress like few others, having been a friend of Rajiv Gandhi. While that makes him enviably close to the Gandhi family, he clearly doesn't enjoy unquestioned supremacy in his state. Or, he wouldn't be continuously locked in a power struggle.

One reason could be that while Bajwa is seen being close to Rahul Gandhi, Amarinder is a Sonia Gandhi loyalist. Indeed, the two have argued over Rahul's elevation as Congress president. Unlike Bajwa, Amarinder believes the heir apparent needs to acquire more experience for the job.

Ambika Soni may be appointed Punjab Congress chief after Rahul Gandhi returns from his US trip

So, if neither of them are ideal for the job, who is? The Congress top brass appears to have settled on the party's general secretary Ambika Soni as a compromise candidate. The announcement is said to have been put on hold until Rahul returns from his trip to the US and Amarinder from the UK.

Soni has the credentials: she has led the state unit earlier, much before Bajwa, Amarinder or even Bhattal. More importantly, the news of her impending elevation hasn't drawn protests from either of the camps so far.

If Soni is indeed sent back to the state, her task this time would be quite onerous.

First published: 1 October 2015, 5:49 IST
 
Charu Kartikeya @CharuKeya

Assistant Editor at Catch, Charu enjoys covering politics and uncovering politicians. Of nine years in journalism, he spent six happily covering Parliament and parliamentarians at Lok Sabha TV and the other three as news anchor at Doordarshan News. A Royal Enfield enthusiast, he dreams of having enough time to roar away towards Ladakh, but for the moment the only miles he's covering are the 20-km stretch between home and work.