BJP targets Gandhis as Sidhu advisors add fuel to Cong fire in Punjab

For the first time, the BJP has fired salvos at the feuding Punjab Congress and the party leadership. The latest round began with the two advisors of newly appointed Punjab Congress chief Navjot Singh Sidhu making unsavoury remarks on Kashmir and Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh.

Sidhu’s advisers Balwinder Singh Mali and Pyarelal Garg continue to maintain that their comments were not anti-national, offering the BJP a chance to target the Gandhis since Sidhu is their direct appointee.

In a Facebook post last week, Mali had described Kashmir as a “country of Kashmiri people.” He had also questioned why J&K has been “turned into an open jail” and for how long. Separately, he had also posted a sketch of former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, in which she is seen standing near a heap of human skulls with a gun in her hand. A skull is seen hanging from the gun’s muzzle.

Garg, on the other hand, has questioning Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh’s frequent criticism of Pakistan.

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Sources in Congress said the two advisors could have easily avoided the controversy at a time when Assembly polls are months away in Uttar Pradesh, a state where the Congress is struggling to make its presence felt. Sources said the top leadership is upset with Sidhu and also his advisers for the comment as it will only strengthen the BJP’s bid to polarize the narrative and present the Gandhis in poor light.

The BJP has blamed the Gandhis for their silence. The Punjab CM, too, is worried that their silence can make things worse as Punjab is a border state.

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The BJP has demanded action against Sidhu and his two advisers. At a press conference BJP’s Sambit Patra said that “since Sidhu was chosen by the Gandhis, it shows that the advisors have their support.” Opposition Akalis and BJP are seeking action under the Sedition Act.

The Congress is already fighting dissidence in all states ruled by it. In Rajasthan, a controversy is built on accommodating Sachin Pilot’s loyalists in the Ashok Gehlot cabinet whose expansion has been delayed for months. The latest to add to the party headache is Chhattisgarh, where CM Bhupesh Baghel is being challenged by his Health Minister TS Singh Deo who has demanded the CM’s chair “as per a deal” post-2018 assembly polls. The two are expected to meet Rahul Gandhi in Delhi to sort out their differences.