Out to woo NRIs, Capt to tour US, Canada

Tribune News Service

Jalandhar, April 2

In a move aimed at countering the Aam Aadmi Party’s (AAP’s) influence on NRIs and garnering the Punjabi diaspora’s support for the Congress ahead of the 2017 Assembly polls, PPCC chief Capt Amarinder Singh will embark on an 18-day tour to the US and Canada from April 19.

Accompanied by a battery of party leaders, including Sufi singer Hans Raj Hans and former Punjab Youth Congress (PYC) chief Vikramjit Chaudhary, Amarinder will first land in Chicago and then travel to Toronto, Vancouver, Los Angeles and San Francisco before winding up his tour on May 7.

Talking to The Tribune here today, the PPCC chief said, “NRIs are looking up to AAP. My aim is to neutralise that and positively project the agenda of my party.”

He further said: “My plan is to stay in each city for two days. We will hold a rally on the first day, followed by small gatherings the next day.”

Amarinder said his wife, Congress MLA Preneet Kaur, would return from her Australia-New Zealand tour on April 6. She will now undertake a tour to Italy, Germany and the UK.

On the Akalis’ move to honour Deputy CM Sukhbir Badal with the title of ‘Saviour of Punjab’s waters’, the former CM quipped, “They must have seen him holding a gadwi (utensil). I protected waters of the state for 12 years and he has done nothing but mishandle the issue for four consecutive days.”

On the advice given to him by his poll strategist Prashant Kishor to shed the ‘Maharaja’ tag, Amarinder replied with a smile, “I had dropped it long ago when I contested my first election in 1977. People only call me Captain.”

Amarinder rejected reports of his grandson Nirvan Singh entering politics. “He does not have any interest in politics and instead wants to get into the United Nations.”

‘Infighting being taken seriously’

Jalandhar: The issues of infighting and indiscipline in the Congress were taken up by party workers with PPCC president Capt Amarinder Singh during a workers’ meet here on Saturday.

Answering media queries later, the PPCC chief admitted that infighting existed in the party at the upper level — not at the middle or lower levels — and it was now being taken seriously. Amarinder referred to cases of indiscipline by Congress leaders Bir Devinder Singh and Jagmeet Brar. “I have made a recommendation against Brar to the AICC,” Amarinder said.

On new Rajya Sabha members Partap Singh Bajwa and Shamsher Singh Dullo, he quipped: “Changa hoya dono Punjab politics to bahar chale gaye (Good that both are out of Punjab politics).” — TNS