|HT|
A senior Punjab Congress leader, Ravneet Singh Bittu, on Monday met prime minister Narendra Modi weeks after the party was voted out of power in the state. The Congress has been keeping a low profile in Punjab since the March 10 election results and the AAP's landslide win. "Today met the Hon'ble Prime Minister of India, Sh. @narendramodi ji and discussed issues of Punjab," the 46-year-old leader tweeted with photos of him and the prime minister. The meeting has sparked buzz about trouble in the party. Sonia Gandhi had asked all heads of the party units in five states - Punjab, Manipur, Uttarakhand, Goa and Uttar Pradesh - after a poor poll show in the latest round of assembly elections. Navjot Singh Sidhu had stepped down as the Punjab Congress chief.
The Congress in Punjab is said to have suffered due to its constant infighting which led to the dramatic exit of a veteran - Amarinder Singh - amid constant attacks from Sidhu. The high drama in the party had often made it to headlines as party's top leadership tried to settle differences. The BJP managed to get just two seats in the state despite tying up with former chief minister Amarinder Singh.
The meeting between Bittu, Lok Sabha MP from Ludhiana, with PM Modi comes as Sidhu continues to criticise the BJP, his former party, over various national issues. Diesel goes up 10% in thirteen days … prices go up directly proportionally ! Has the MSP of farmers and daily wages of the labourer gone up in the same proportion? 90 % Indians suffer as the value of there earnings depreciates … Govt turns blind eye (sic)," Sidhu tweeted on Sunday amid hike in petrol prices.
Earlier on Saturday, in a tweet to project party unity, he had shared a video showing state leaders together under a roof: '“Discussions” , Congress for honesty & integrity.. introspection on the way forward for Punjab. Will stand up and fight for Punjab & every Congress worker till the last breathe..."
(Except for the headline and the pictorial description, this story has not been edited by THE DEN staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)