Won’t float party, but am open to tie-ups: Sidhu
Former BJP MP Navjot Singh Sidhu on Wednesday announced that he would not float a new political party ahead of the Punjab Assembly elections and that Awaaz-e-Punjab would remain a political forum, which would be open to alliance for the betterment of Punjab.
“Our battle is to shake the system that has ruined Punjab. Politics is not a profession but a mission. There is no personal or political vendetta. The forum welcomes any alliance for the betterment of Punjab and will not be a political party,” Mr. Sidhu said in a statement.
Hitting out at the ruling Shiromani Akali Dal-led government and the Congress party, Mr. Sidhu said: “We will not divide the anti-incumbency vote-bank, which could indirectly benefit the ‘Badal-Amarinder’ nexus that has plundered Punjab in the last 15 years. This will defeat our purpose of bringing a change for the betterment of Punjab.”
‘Won’t play spoilsport’
“We will not play spoilsport and instead will facilitate the Punjab election,” he said, adding that the minimum time taken by a new party to win a State is almost two years, which is “ample testimony” to the fact that three months is too short a time for the Herculean task.
Meanwhile, Punjab Congress president Capt. Amarinder Singh said: “Mr. Sidhu must have realised that he fits better in a comedy show than anywhere else, including politics.”
Mr. Singh said he had always insisted that Mr. Sidhu would hardly be able to form a credible and viable political party, adding that, today, he vindicated his stand.
Punjab’s Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal also took a jibe at Navjot Singh Sidhu, saying Mr. Sidhu or his Awaaz-e-Punjab would be able to make “the slightest of difference” to the political equation in State.