While at the national level, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and the Congress have joined hands as part of the Indian National Developmental, Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) Opposition grouping, the bond appears to be on a weak wicket in Punjab.
Senior leaders of the Congress’ Punjab unit have been critical of any possible alliance with the AAP, which is in power in Punjab. Congress leaders have been consistently drawing their party high command’s attention to the AAP’s campaign against Congress leaders and workers in State by allegedly misusing the police and investigation agencies, thus ruling out solidarity.
On Tuesday, disquiet was visible again when the Leader of the Opposition in the Punjab Assembly, Congress’ Partap Singh Bajwa, dismissed any collaboration relationship with the AAP. “We don’t have any kind of relation with the AAP. We have stated it earlier and [we are] repeating it again today,” Mr. Bajwa said, responding to a question from a journalist, adding, “If we were supporting them [the AAP], would we have been at a sit-in protest [dharna] against them?”
Congress party leaders and workers staged a dharna at Mohali against the Punjab Government’s recent decision to dissolve gram panchayats, panchayat samitis, and zila parishads pending elections, which the Congress termed an “unconstitutional decision”.
On supporting the AAP’s stand against the recently passed Bill on control over Delhi’s Civil Services in Parliament, Mr. Bajwa said “...What happened in Delhi, if the BJP will victimise in States, it would be limited to that, not here [in Punjab].”
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On August 10, the State government in its order said that polls for electing members to the panchayat samitis and zila parishads will be held by November 25, and to gram panchayats by December 31.
Addressing the gathering, Punjab Congress president Amarinder Singh Raja Warring hit out at the AAP government, demanding the revocation of the decision.
“We will not tolerate the attack on the gram panchayats and the AAP’s attempt to intimidate the panchs and sarpanchs. Rain, heat or storm, nothing can stop us! We will keep raising our voice to shield the federal structure of the country and we will keep protesting till Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann revokes the unconstitutional decision to dissolve panchayats before their tenure ends,” Mr. Warring said.
