Congress leader Manish Tewari ‘questions party’s silence’ following Navjot Sidhu’s recent statement

New Delhi, August 28

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Prominent leader of the G-23 group in the Congress, Manish Tewari, has “questioned the party’s silence” on Punjab Congress president Navjot Singh Sidhu following his recent statement in Amritsar.

Sources close to Tewari said that in August last year when the group of leaders had written a letter to Sonia Gandhi for the betterment of the party, they were called traitors, but now no action was taken against Sidhu.

Tewari tweeted a video on Saturday, where Sidhu said if not allowed to work independently he would resort to “eent se eent baja denge”.

Tewari, a former Union minister, used an Urdu couplet to describe the situation, “Hum aah bhi bharte hain to ho jaate hain badnaam, woh qatal bhi karte hain tau charcha nahin hota.”

On August 23 last year, Congress leaders, including Tewari, had written a letter to Sonia Gandhi for a “visible and effective leadership” and internal party elections.

Speaking at a party function in Amritsar on Friday, Sidhu had said if he is allowed to work according to his own policy of hope and faith, he would ensure Congress rule in the state for 20 years. “But if you don’t allow me to make decisions, then I can’t help anything,” Sidhu had said without mincing words.

Meanwhile, the power struggle between Sidhu and Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh continues. Amarinder confidante and Cabinet minister Rana Gurmit Singh Sodhi hosted a dinner at his house on Thursday. As many as 58 MLAs and eight MPs attended the dinner and expressed their confidence that the party would win the 2022 Assembly poll under Capt Amarinder Singh. “The journey has started today,” Sodhi later said in a tweet.

After Sidhu’s recent statement, Harish Rawat, general secretary in-charge of Punjab, had met Sonia Gandhi on Friday and apprised her of the issue. IANS