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Remove some advisers, officials to repair govt’s image: MP Bajwa to Capt
Rajya Sabha MP says certain officers were hurdles in smooth working of the Congress dispensation in state
Rajya Sabha member Partap Singh Bajwa on Friday said chief minister Capt Amarinder Singh should remove some key advisers and officials to repair the image of the state government, denying any meeting with the CM amid the ongoing rift in the Punjab Congress.
Bajwa, who has been critical of the CM’s style of functioning, said he needed to get rid of officers who were hurdles in smooth working of the government. “If these people cannot work properly, they should go on leave or quit their positions. All retired officers given important positions should be replaced with party men. The CM needs to address such irritants, including unfulfilled promises,” he said at a press conference in Chandigarh.
The Rajya Sabha member said he did not have any meeting, secret or otherwise, with Amarinder as was being claimed. “He is the CM of our party. We are part of a family. If he wants to come to meet me, he will be most welcome,” he said, adding, “I have no personal enmity with him but there is a difference of opinion over the government’s functioning. I have not changed my views.”
Bajwa’s denial came amid a strong buzz in Congress circles and some media reports that he and Amarinder met in Chandigarh recently and have buried the hatchet to reach an understanding as the former wants to come back to state politics. A senior party leader claimed that Bajwa was keen on contesting from the Batala assembly seat in the assembly elections next year.
‘No colonel can become
general overnight’
About former minister Navjot Singh Sidhu eyeing the state unit president’s post, Bajwa said he, high command and party workers want Sidhu to get an important role but it takes time to reach top positions. “There are party loyalists who have spent 40-45 years, besides taksali (traditional) Congressmen…loyalty, seniority and capability are important. No colonel can become a general overnight. The decision has been left to the party leadership,” he said.
The Rajya Sabha MP also said that when Sidhu was entering the Congress (in 2017), some senior Punjab leaders were creating hurdles. “I intervened at that time that he (Sidhu) and Pargat Singh will be assets for the party. Sidhu is a good speaker and has a good image,” he added.
Bajwa also said he had told the three-member Kharge committee and the party high command that he is not in contention for the chief minister’s post or that of the state unit president.
