Navjot Sidhu to meet Punjab CM again; offered state Congress chief or Cabinet seat: Source

In the latest development, Punjab CM Captain Amarinder Singh has invited fellow Congress leader Navjot Singh Sidhu for a meeting on Wednesday to possibly end the rift between the two leaders, as per reports. Sidhu, who previously resigned from CM Amarinder Singh's cabinet in 2019, was invited twice in the past by the latter to iron out the differences even as he was negotiating with the Punjab CM via Punjab Congress in-charge Harish Rawat. As per reports, Sidhu has been invited to Captain Amarinder Singh's Siswan farmhouse on Thursday where the rift between the two leaders is expected to be resolved.

The Congress high command is reportedly interested in making Sidhu the state chief, however, Punjab CM Amarinder Singh is offering him a cabinet position of his choice, as per sources. Earlier in February, Sidhu had met Congress president Sonia Gandhi at her residence in New Delhi and it was learned that they discussed considering an active role for him in the party, news agency PTI quoting its sources said. It was speculated that the former cricketer, who has remained away from Punjab politics ever since he resigned from the state cabinet, is reconsidering taking up a ministerial berth. 

Navjot Singh Sidhu vs Captain Amarinder Singh

Sidhu had met Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh over lunch in November last year. CM said that they had some "simple talks" and expressed hope that he and Sidhu will continue to have cordial meetings. "I was satisfied and happy with the meeting, and so was Sidhu," he said. "We did not make any plans for Punjab or India or the world. We just had some simple talks, during which Sidhu shared a lot of his cricketing experience," Singh said, adding that unfortunately, the media was making a mountain out of a molehill.

Sidhu and Singh have not been on the best of terms since May 2019 when the CM accused the former cricketer of the "inept handling" of the Local Government Department, claiming it resulted in "poor performance" of the Congress in urban areas during the 2019 Lok Sabha polls. Sidhu was stripped of key portfolios in a cabinet reshuffle, after which he resigned from the state cabinet and stayed away from all Congress activities.

Sidhu is also known to have lashed out at Captain Amarinder Singh in the past, referring to him as 'Kaun sa Captain; Rahul Gandhi is my captain'. However, the Punjab CM appears to be preparing to defend his seat in next year's elections. He's appointed IPAC chief and poll strategist Prashant Kishor as his special advisor at the rank of a cabinet minister, even as his principal rival SAD's chief Sukhbir Singh Badal has already declared the seat from which he'll contest the Punjab elections which the Congress had won comfortably in 2017.