Jalandhar: Former Indian hockey captain and Jalandhar Cantonment MLA Pargat Singh has been vocal on issues with which Congress government and party are grappling in Punjab.
As a lot is happening within the Congress and new issues and narratives are coming up, he spoke on the latest happenings in the party.
You took the lead in raising issues about performance of Punjab government but crisis is not yet over.
Where do you think things have reached? Party high command is very keen on working out a solution and has already given 18 tasks to CM with deadlines.
This is the actual solution: to fulfil our poll promises.
Other solutions can work only if party’s poll promises are fulfilled and culprits of looting the state are taken to task.
There are talks and even meetings to maintain communal and caste balances when reshuffling is being talked about.
These are attempts to side-track real issues which are about performance of the state government.
All what is happening in the party now started with questions on the issues Punjab is facing and what we had promised before polls, but some quarters want people to believe that the real issues are communal and caste balances.
Punjabis across communities follow Guru Nanak’s philosophy of universal humanism.
For instance, PPCC president Sunil Jakhar, a Hindu, was most vociferous and consistent in seeking justice for sacrilege and police-firing victims.
He never gave up the issue and was more vocal even than our Sikh leaders.
This is what real Punjab is.
We need competent persons from which ever community they are coming.
Being a sportsperson, we only pick good players and not on the basis of communities.
Good people would work for all, while bad can ditch even their own.
Some leaders are openly advocating that only Taksali Congress leaders should be given prime positions by the party high command when Navjot Sidhu is expected to get an important role? This Taksali argument has been started only after talks about reshuffling in party leadership started.
Those furthering this argument actually have their own interests.
We need Taksali Punjabis, for whom Punjab is first and foremost.
Parties and governments need fresh though processes and talent.
How else a party can grow? Those who call themselves Taksali Congress leaders had brought the party to just 14 seats in state assembly in 1997.
In parliamentary elections, party had dipped to two seats in 1996 and then to zero in 1998 when Taksali Congress leaders were at the helm in Punjab.
Finally, party got Captain Amarinder Singh in its fold and its fortunes were revived.
He became PPCC president in just three months of his joining the party.
Then after 2012 elections, Manpreet Badal was brought in.
They should check with party strategist Prashant Kishor about how much efforts he made to get Navjot Sidhu in the party in 2016.
Leading countries in the world tend to bring in domain experts in crucial ministries.
We have example of Dr Manmohan Singh, who was not even a member of the party when he was made finance minister and he ultimately remained Prime Minister for 10 years and led country to glory in both roles.
Will now these Punjab leaders object to Dr Manmohan Singh’s elevation to the top? Go back in history, even Partap Singh Kairon was originally an Akali and was brought into Congress by Jawahar Lal Nehru, so was India’s most successful foreign affairs minister late Swaran Singh.
Lok Sabha speaker late Sardar Hukam Singh and former Punjab minister and MP late Umrao Singh were also originally Akalis.
Will now they erase this part of history and role of these stalwarts? This Taksali argument is hollow.
Punjab is facing severe power crisis and now CM has said power purchase agreements (PPAs) are being examined.
You raised this issue earlier and now your party is facing backlash from people? People understand that Akalis are bigger culprits who signed the lopsided PPAs, but of course we are also facing the heat.
Examining their PPAs and action should have been done earlier as we had promised it before polls.
Anyway, now the process should be fast and firm.
Internal audits will bring these companies to their knees.
However, real things are not being done.
People are questioning your timing of raising questions as you openly started questioning the CM at the fag end of the government? I have been consistent in raising issues, but internally in meetings or through two letters over a year and half back.
In internal meetings, I raised even those issues which probably no other leader raised.
For instance, in my meeting with CM, I had objected to his uncharitable comments about Canadian defence minister Harjit Singh Sajjan, when he visited India.
I pointed it out that it did not send right message in our diaspora.
After 1984, Sikhs did not vote for Congress, but now they have sided with Congress, but CM’s comments had not gone down well in the community.
It seems the BJP-led Union government manipulated things in a way that two BJP CMs held meetings with Sajjan, but they made Punjab CM make adverse remarks.
Union government apparently manipulated to push Sikhs away from Congress once again.
I have been raising all other issues which I have raised recently.