In the 1950s and ’60s, the Congress as the ‘dominant’ party used to play the dual role of the ‘ruling party’ as well as the ‘party of opposition’. The opposition parties, weak and divided, would be acting as ‘parties of pressure’. At the state level, the opposition to the sitting Congress chief minister would come from the rival factional leaders. As a ‘federalist’ party with a robust internal democracy, the then Congress had powerful regional leaders who enjoyed significant autonomy vis-à-vis the party central high command, which would confine itself to a mediating role only in case a leadership tussle got out of control.
Then came a phase when under the person-centred leadership of Indira Gandhi (followed by her son), the Congress in the 1970s and ’80s turned into a ‘centralist’ party. The chief ministers, nominated by the family more on the basis of their loyalty rather than leadership skill or support base, would be routinely coming to Delhi seeking approval for even trivial issues related to the party or the government. The ‘high command’ (read Nehru-Gandhi family) would tolerate or even openly encourage the rival factional leaders in the state units. Any chief minister perceived as becoming powerful and flexing his own muscles would be eased out on some pretext, often using the dissidents for the purpose.
Watching the recent developments in the Punjab unit of the Congress brings a sense of déjà vu, as there appear to be striking similarities from both the earlier phases in the way the outgoing chief minister was defying the high command and the manner in which the high command has acted belatedly, notwithstanding obvious differences on the ground.
Captain: The regional satrap
Let us consider the profile of the fall guy. The two-time outgoing chief minister, belonging to the dominant Jat Sikh community with more than five decades’ experience in state politics, Captain Amarinder Singh reminds one of the quintessence regional satraps of Nehruvian India.
Since joining the Congress in 1980 after brief stint in army, the former Patiala royal has consciously projected himself as a secular nationalist former fauji in Punjab’s macho tradition, who would be ready to take cudgels even at the cost of his political career not only for his honour but also for the cause of Punjabi Suba and the Sikh community. It has been evidenced in his earlier resignations also, first as a Congress MP and then as a Akali Dal minister over the Operation Blue Star and Operation Black Thunder respectively in 1984 and 1986.
Charanjit Singh Channi. Photo: PTI
In his earlier stint as the chief minister, Captain was instrumental in getting the Punjab Termination of Agreements Bill passed by the assembly in 2004, resulting in the annulment of the pact entered into by the state in 1981 on the sharing of Ravi and Beas river waters with Haryana and Rajasthan while keeping the party high command in the dark. He also almost forced the hand of the high command, threatening to break the party, to become the party’s chief ministerial candidate in the 2017 election. The party won this and the subsequent Lok Sabha elections held in 2019. Earlier, the party had won the 1999 and 2002 Lok Sabha and assembly elections under his leadership.
In the last two decades, the Captain remained the tallest Congress leader of Punjab, defying attempts by the high command to tame him by promoting dissident faction leaders like Rajinder Kaur Bhattal and Partap Singh Bajwa, among others. What also helped Captain was Sonia Gandhi’s aversion to meddling in the borderland Sikh-majority state’s affairs beyond a limit, despite Rahul Gandhi showing inclination to do so. Unlike his rivals, Captain retained the support base not only from Malwa but also from Majha and Doaba regions. In a state where religion, region, caste, kinship and language all play roles in influencing electoral choices, Captain with his moderate secular nationalist image fit the bill.
The high command factor
So what happened then? After all, until very recently, going by Delhi-based media reports, the Congress seemed in a good space as the state geared up for the forthcoming assembly elections. As any discernible observer on the ground could see clearly, it was not so – not only due to the rising graph of the Aam Aadmi Party, as Punjabi people have been looking for the third alternative since 2014. It was also because of the dismal performance of the government in terms of fulfilling its tall populist promises made on the eve of the 2017 elections like generating employment for the youth, waiving of farmers’ debts, reforms in the power sector, bringing back industries to the state, ending corruption and the transport, sand and land mafia raj.
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The Captain’s reluctance to change his laid back leadership style, which had come under criticism during his earlier stint, also led to discontent, even among his own party’s MLAs and ministers. He remained inaccessible, confined to his farm house, and depended heavily on a few trusted bureaucrats. The foremost issue that triggered the Captain’s downfall was his government’s failure to bring to justice the culprits responsible for sacrilege and also those responsible for the subsequent firing on agitating Sikhs, a highly emotive issue that gave ammunition to the rival AAP. The failure to check the drug menace and punish the Akali bigwigs allegedly involved in illegal trades gave rise to the popular perception about Captain being in a tacit understanding with the Akali leadership.
All these issues were being raised by not only the dissident faction leaders but also by ordinary party workers, much before Navjot Singh Sidhu led the revolt two months ago with the tacit support of the high command. Dissident MLAs seemed genuinely concerned about their electoral future, as poll promises were not being fulfilled. Nor did there seem to be any urgency to do so, despite repeated reminders to the Captain. Much to their dismay, in order to quell the revolt, Captain resorted to underhanded practices against his own party leaders, misusing his position in the government.
Why did Captain seem so complacent in the face of turmoil within the party? It’s possible that his false sense of security, despite being called twice to Delhi and being handed over the dissident MLAs’ complaints, came from his belief that a much weakened high command would not take action against him, fearing a split within the party. Also, the high command was unable to find a replacement which could have been acceptable to all the faction leaders.
Captain being sanguine about the poll prospects came due to the predicament of the rival parties, namely the Akali Dal and the BJP, especially over the three contentious farm laws which have become the rallying point among the landholding Jatt Sikh farmers pitted firmly against the Modi government and not absolving the Akali leadership despite its recent somersault. It is obvious now that neither his own party legislators or the high command agree with it.
Sidhu factor
What Sidhu brings to the table for the Congress in the state enticed the Gandhi family to appoint him the party president, despite Captain staunch opposition to the move. Earlier, the Captain had refused to make room for him in the cabinet. Sidhu, a Jatt Sikh, to his credit, has had a clean image as a politician, a rarity in the state where most of the politicians cutting across party lines have faced corruption and other criminal charges. His public image as a celebrated cricketer, a media personality and a powerful orator has endeared him to the state youth, making him a crowd puller. His role in opening the Kartarpur Corridor has also won him the panthic support.
File image of Congress leader Navjot Singh Sidhu. Photo: Facebook/Navjot Singh Sidhu
However, Sidhu has also been seen as a rank opportunist, shifting his political affiliations. His credibility as a team man has also been suspect. His participating in the swearing ceremony of Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan and praising Khan during the inauguration of the Kartarpur Corridor has been raised by the Captain, most recently in his last round of interviews, while reminding people about Pakistan’s role in abetting terrorism and dumping arms. At the moment, the Captain has torpedoed Sidhu’s chances to be anointed as the chief minister by threatening to break the party, but he would undoubtedly be the face of the Congress campaign and in case of a win, be one of the strongest contenders for heading the government.
The way ahead
With the appointment of youthful Charanjit Singh Channi as the chief minister, the party high command has tried to keep the factional fight under check for the time being. There is another obvious advantage in going for the first Dalit chief minister in the hitherto Jatt Sikhs-dominated politics of Punjab. Except Giyani Zail Singh, all the chief ministers of Punjab after the reorganisation have been Jat Sikhs. Dalits constitute one-third of the state’s population and are territorially concentrated to an extent that they even constitute a majority in many of the 34 reserved constituencies, especially in the Doaba region.
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It is, however, obvious that the crisis in the party is far from being over, given the rebellious stance of the Captain and factional leaders. This is evident also from Sunil Jakhar’s tweet raising question about Sidhu being the face of the campaign, as stated by the party observer Harish Rawat. Channi has been captain’s long-term critic and is perceived to be close to the Sidhu-led faction. It was only after Sidhu reportedly refused to accept Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa, a fellow powerful Jatt Sikh leader from Majha and therefore a potential rival, that Channi was selected.
Now, as the Gandhis openly meddled in the leadership issue over the last two months, they have personal stakes to ensure the party wins in the forthcoming election. A humiliated Captain is likely to undercut the party chances if he floats a regional outfit or joins the BJP – or even if he chooses to remain in the party. The latter seems like a distinct possibility, given the political language he has used after tendering his resignation. The Punjab episode opens up another challenge for the Gandhis to resolve, after the Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh issues where factional leaders Sachin Pilot and T.S. Singh Deo have been waiting in the wings.
Ashutosh Kumar is professor, department of political science, Panjab University, Chandigarh.