Navjot Singh Sidhu resigns from Punjab cabinet
Congress leader Navjot Singh Sidhu on Sunday posted his resignation letter on social media. He had resigned as minister from Punjab cabinet on June 10, 2019 and had submitted his letter of resignation to former Congress President Rahul Gandhi. In his resignation letter, Sidhu had written, "I hereby resign as minister from the Punjab cabinet."
Sidhu currently serves as the Minister of Local Government, Tourism, Cultural Affairs, and Museums of the State of Punjab.
The development was confirmed on news agency ANI, which also posted Sidhu's resignation letter.
On June 10, Punjab minister and Congress leader Navjot Singh Sidhu had met Rahul Gandhi in Delhi and had apprised him of the "situation" in the state.
The development came days after Chief Minister Amarinder Singh had divested Sidhu of the crucial local government department.
"Met the Congress President, handed him my letter, appraised him of the situation !” Sidhu had tweeted.
Sidhu, who moved from the BJP to the Congress just before 2017 assembly polls, had skipped a cabinet meeting and instead chose to address the media at his official residence.
The tension between CM Amarinder Singh and Sidhu had come out in the open in May, when the chief minister had blamed the cricketer-turned-politician's “inept handling” of the local government department for the “poor performance” of the Congress in the urban areas in the Lok Sabha polls.
The chief minister had also said the urban vote bank had been the backbone of the Congress in Punjab but Sidhu's “failure” to do any development work had impacted the party.
On July 6 this year, Punjab cabinet minister Brahm Mohindra had appealed to Sidhu to assume charge of the power ministry, amid an ongoing stalemate between Chief Minister Amarinder Singh and the cricketer-turned-politician.
However, opposition parties including the SAD, the BJP and the AAP slammed the chief minister, raising questions over his leadership claiming that the ongoing tussle between the two has led to a "constitutional crisis" in the state.
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