Sidhu writes to Sonia Gandhi raising issues concerning Punjab, seeks meeting with her

The Punjab Congress chief described the "13-point agenda" as separate from the manifesto by 'means of its long-term vision'

Congress’s troubles with Punjab unit chief Navjot Singh Sidhu are not over yet.

A day after Congress President Sonia Gandhi asked party leaders not to speak to her through the media, Sidhu posted a letter addressed to her on Twitter, seeking a meeting to discuss the 13-point agenda for Punjab, flagging in his letter issues which the government "must deliver upon" and saying it is the poll-bound state's "last chance for resurrection and redemption".

The letter, dated October 15, was made public two days after Sidhu met Rahul Gandhi to share his concerns regarding the Punjab Congress and claimed that all issues have been “sorted out”.

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Sidhu reminded Gandhi of the party's 18-point agenda “given to the last chief minister” of Punjab and said that those were “equally relevant today”.

“Today, I write to your esteemed self with priority areas among the 18-point agenda of the 2017 campaign and the manifesto promises which the state government must deliver upon,” said Sidhu in the letter on the Punjab Congress letterhead that did not mention his designation as the state Congress chief.

He also pitched for more representation to the Dalits and Backward Classes in the state cabinet.

“Even after High Command's progressive decision of appointing a Dalit chief minister to give the under-privileged more voice in the government, it has not been supported in the state in equal measure. We should have at least one Mazhabi Sikh in Cabinet, representation to Dalits from Doaba, at least two representatives from Backward Caste Community in the Cabinet,” he wrote.

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Sidhu claimed that it might be the “last damage-control exercise or else, mafia-raj ruling the state patronised by the Badals will take the state to the extent of financial emergency, corruption and agrarian crisis from which there will be no return.”

Sidhu had posted his resignation as state unit chief on Twitter on September 28 within months of taking over the post. His sudden resignation within days of the ouster of Amarinder Singh as chief minister came as a shock to the Congress leadership, particularly Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Vadra who had backed the cricketer-turned-politician to the hilt over the two-term chief minister.

Sidhu was upset that the new chief minister Charanjit Singh Channi had ignored his suggestions on the appointment of the new Punjab Police chief and the advocate general and some portfolio allocations to ministers after the new cabinet formation.

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