Bajwa-Amarinder clash intensifies, Bajwa kicks out Amarinder loyalist

By Satinder Bains
CHANDIGARH: The ongoing war between PPCC President Partap Singh Bajwa and former Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh for political supermacy in Punjab Congress has scaled high pitch after Bajwa kicked out Pawan Dewan President of DCC (Urban) Ludhiana. Dewan was only survivor in the re-organisation of districtr units after Bajwa appointed his loyalists.

Dewan is considered close to Captain Amarinder Singh and also former Union Minister Manish Tewari. It was due to influence of Tewari that Bajwa was not able to remove Dewan. Tewari seems to have lost his esteem in the AICC after his removal from the post of AICC spokesperson. By removing Dewan, Bajwa has tried to sent across a message that he is the boss in the PPCC.

Amarinder Singh for sometime kept low profile after Congress lost the assembly elections twice under his command in 2007 and 2012. Many of his loyalists had shifted base to Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) for reasons best known to them. The move has put Bajwa on sticky wicket and it seemed for a while that Bajwa is loosing control in the party.

Amarinder returned to limelight after winning Amritsar Lok Sabha seat where luck shined on him and he retained his strength by defeating BJP stalwart Arun Jaitely, now Finance Minister of India. The defeat of Jaitely was big jolt to Akali Dal and BJP and it proved a shot in the arm for Amarinder. It was a time when a realisation started growing in a section of Congress that Amarinder is the only mass leader in Pun jab who can tilt the scales. Again, in the recently held bye-election of Patiala urban and Talwandi Sabo, Bajwa ran out of luck who was incharge of Talwandi Sabo seat and party candidate lost it. Amarinder's wife Preneet Kaur won from Patiala(urban) seat and it reinforced the argument in favour of Amarinder.

Amarinder had not invited Bajwa on oath taking ceremony of Preneet Kaur and also a lunch hosted for part6y MLAs. Amarinder was vocal to claim that Bajwa was neither his friend nor a well wisher. "I have called only friends and welwishers", he told media. Bajwa had avoided a harsh rejoinder in his words, however he sattled the score by removing Dewan.

Though Amarinder and Tewari have preferred to skip the issue, Dewan has hit back strongly and blamed Bajwa for damaging Congress in Punjab.

In a press conference, Dewan rubbished the charges of indiscipline levelled against him by Bajwa. He said, it was actually Bajwa who was resorting to indiscipline by trying to instigate people against former Chief Minister and Congress Deputy Leader in the Lok Sabha Capt Amarinder

Dewan said that even after becoming the PCC president Bajwa remained insecure and from day one wanted the party leaders and office bearers to issue statements against Capt Amarinder Singh. He said, the main reason for his removal as the DCC president was that he had refused to oblige Bajwa by not being signatory to various statements against Capt Amarinder Singh that were issued at his (Bajwa’s) behest.

The former district Congress president said, the immediate provocation appeared to be his working for the Congress candidate Ms Preneet Kaur in Patiala while Bajwa wanted him to campaign in Talwandi Sabo. “I told him that I had an urban experience and it would be difficult for me to work in rural Talwandi Sabo and he took offence of it”, he said about Bajwa. He also accused Bajwa of demanding funds from him which he was not ready to collect.

Dewan said, he was seeking appointment with the Congress President Ms Sonia Gandhi to urge her to remove Bajwa from the PCC presidentship if the party really wanted to save the party in the state. “Since the day Bajwa was appointed the president the party has been destroyed so much so he (Bajwa) could not win even his own seat of Gurdaspur and was defeated even in his home assembly segment of Qadian”, he said.
He claimed that had Capt Amarinder Singh not contested from Amritsar, the party would have drawn a total blank in Punjab under Bajwa’s leadership. He said, after Capt Amarinder Singh joined the poll fray the workers’ morale was boosted that led to the party’s victory in Jalandhar and Ludhiana. “Otherwise Bajwa was set to preside over party’s doom”, he remarked.