Gandhis Initiate Purge; More Steps Underway To Revamp Congress

The ruthless removal of Amarinder Singh shows a newfound decisiveness in the Congress high command. But the bravado has not answered the existential questions that the party and the Gandhis face

- Soni Mishra

Amarinder Singh, by all means, was the captain of Punjab politics. The Patiala Maharaja ruled the state as he pleased and dealt with the Congress’s central leadership nonchalantly. At a personal level, he enjoyed access to the Gandhi family that very few in the party could match. Rajiv Gandhi was a childhood friend, and he is on a first-name basis with Congress president Sonia Gandhi. Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra call him “uncle”.

But on September 18, the formidable regional satrap was asked by the party leadership to resign as chief minister. The sudden turn of events also marked an assertion by the Gandhis of their authority. They had been facing questions about their leadership, style of functioning and vote-catching ability. For good measure, the royal and imperious Amarinder was replaced by a dalit Sikh leader with humble origins.

What happened in Punjab showed that the primacy of decision-making in Congress now lies with Rahul and Priyanka. There was a shift from the status-quoist and consensus-building approach of Sonia. On display was a decisiveness that has otherwise been seen in the way the Bharatiya Janata Party replaced a few of its chief ministers recently.

If Operation Punjab had the imprint of Rahul writ large, Priyanka played a key role in mainstreaming Amarinder's bete noire, Navjot Singh Sidhu. Rahul got deeply involved in the imbroglio when Sidhu went all out against Amarinder, and several legislators and ministers voiced their discontent with the government.