Cong meet to iron out Punjab row over supporting AAP

In response to the discontentment within the Congress’ Punjab unit regarding potential support to the Arvind Kejriwal-led AAP government on the Delhi ordinance issue, the party high command on Sunday summoned senior state-level leaders to the national capital for consultations.

The decision comes after the Punjab Congress urged the high command to take into account the inputs from state units before making any final decision on the issue.

Punjab Congress chief Amarinder Raja Warring, Leader of Opposition Partap Singh Bajwa, former Deputy Chief Minister and party affairs in charge for Rajasthan Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa are among the senior leaders summoned for a meeting with party president Mallikarjun Kharge. Senior leader Rahul Gandhi is also expected to join the meeting.

The decision to convene the meeting was taken after AICC general secretary (organisation) KC Venugopal received a report from PPCC chief Warring regarding the issue.

The AAP government in Punjab has filed corruption cases against several senior Congress leaders, leading to protests from opposition parties. The state unit alleges that there is a larger political agenda behind these cases.

“AAP has targeted the party venomously. It wants to finish off the party in Punjab, which is why those leaders with a strong support base are being targeted. The party high command should not give time to meet Arvind Kejriwal. It creates bad optics for Punjab politics,” said a senior party leader.

Leader of Opposition, Partap Singh Bajwa, has already urged the high command that AAP deserves no solidarity as the ruling party has unleashed a ruthless “witch-hunt” against the Congress MLAs, leaders, and workers in the state. The party high command has been urged to consult the leaderships of Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Delhi, Uttarakhand, Gujarat and Karnataka before even considering helping AAP.

Punjab Congress leaders feel that AAP chief Kejriwal is trying to set up a narrative that he is capable of uniting the opposition against the BJP.

The Central government has recently issued an ordinance to establish an authority responsible for the transfer and posting of Group-A officers in Delhi. However, the AAP government has criticized this move, labeling it as deceptive in light of the Supreme Court’s verdict on the control of services.

The ordinance was introduced just a week after the Supreme Court granted control over services in Delhi, excluding police, public order, and land, to the elected government. It aims to establish a National Capital Civil Service Authority specifically for the transfer and disciplinary proceedings concerning Group-A officers from the DANICS cadre.

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