Sidhu must realise Power most powerful dept, says Rana Gurjit

Deepkamal Kaur

Tribune News Service

Jalandhar, June 7

Even as minister Navjot Singh Sidhu is maintaining silence since the Cabinet rejig, Doaba-based Congress leaders are learnt to be trying to convince him to accept the new portfolio of Power Minister.

Since Sidhu is learnt to be upset at being divested of Local Bodies and Tourism Ministry that he was working in since the past over two years, former Power Minister Rana Gurjit Singh today said, “Sidhu must realise that Power Ministry is the most powerful department. In Local Bodies, he could only handle the areas under local self-government which could be cities and towns. With Power Ministry, he will be attached to every household — be it city or village. Every house needs continuous power supply, even Moti Bagh Palace, the house of Capt Amarinder.”

Sidhu’s close aide and Jalandhar Cantonment MLA Pargat Singh, with whom he had joined the Congress, seems a bit upset at the recent developments, but he chose to keep a distance from any controversy. People close to Pargat said he was in contact with Sidhu since yesterday and had even met him in Chandigarh making attempts to pacify and calm him. Pargat, however, denied having met Sidhu. He denied giving any comment insisting that he be kept out of any controversy related to him.

Being sportspersons before entering politics, both share a close bonding. Both of them had formed a political outfit Awaaz-e-Punjab before joining the Congress. It was on Sidhu’s insistence that Pargat got the Jalandhar Cantonment ticket in 2017, even thoughCM was interested in fielding Jagbir Brar from here and sending Pargat to Nakodar.