Anil Anand
The temperamental former cricketer and the king of entertainment Navjot Singh Sidhu has made a mark in whatever field he has entered till day. He did so as a politician as well. His three time victory from Amritsar Lok Sabha seat speaks volumes of his popularity as a politician. But he was dethroned by his own party, the BJP, and was denied mandate in 2014 polls in favour of Arun Jaitley.
He has been, ever since, crisscrossing through the political labyrinth and trying to encash his multi-hat image, combined in one as a crowd puller. Dangling carrot of his popularity to both Congress and Aam Aadmi Party, he has, till date, succeeded in keeping both the groups at tenterhooks but as the indecision persisted none seemed to be keen to accept Sidhu’s precondition to accept and nominate him as the chief ministerial candidate.
Sidhu has dug his heels on what he perceived to be a perfect batting wicket to stake his claim for chief ministership. Ostensibly, he missed out on the fact that in the given time frame he has a limitation of Overs to score a century and that the climate, as in cricket, so in politics, has a great role to play.
Suddenly, he has been running the risk of becoming a persona non grata from his self-perceived position of either a king in making or the king maker. His indecisiveness has certainly taken away some sheen from his otherwise impeccably white flannels. This is a sharp slide from his known image of a firm decision maker and a courageous individual.
Some might say Sidhu, in the contest of early 2017 Punjab Assembly elections, is down but he is certainly not, out. As of now he seems to be continuing his parleys both with Congress and AAP looking for a better deal. The multiple choices are, of course, a boon, in any given situation but also raise the risk of added confusion if a timely choice is not made.
The former cricketer has tied himself in an uncertain situation of his own making which he is trying unknot vigorously to stay relevant in Punjab’s current political scenario. Perhaps, Sidhu has realised that he has to act past lest both Congress and AAP slam their respective doors on his face.
Going by the available indications he is in the final stages of sewing a deal with AAP. He might not be projected as the party’s chief ministerial nominee but he could settle for a number two position deputy chief ministership if not for himself then his wife Dr Navjot Kaur Sidhu.
There is nothing new in this proposal as such an offer was made to him by APP high command earlier also. Sidhu’s pre-condition that he should first now as to who would be the chief ministerial candidate had led to a stalemate. The AAP’s national convenor and Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal is near to conceding this demand and share the name of his chief ministerial candidate with Sidhu.
Senior advocate H S Phoolka, who had unsuccessfully contested last Lok Sabha elections from Ludhiana and is known for his persistent legal battle to seek justice in 1984 anti-Sikh riot cases, is emerging as the likely choice with Sidhu’s consent. In such an event it is likely that his wife would be projected as the prospective deputy chief minister.
It seems an alliance between Sidhu’s fledgling outfit Awaz-e-Punjab and AAP is becoming a compulsion as both are caught in a similar bind emanating from indecisiveness and dissensions. AAP’s graph has certainly come down due to internal squabbling that led to splits, and total confusion about its chief ministerial candidate.
Under the given conditions AAP and Sidhu need each other more than anyone else. There is a strong feeling in the party that a popular local face such as Sidhu would be a good counter to offset the losses caused by the exit of its earlier state convenor Sucha Singh Chottepur and many other popular leaders.
On Sidhu’s part his newly found Awaz-e-Punjab has proved to be akin to a still-born child. It is still not clear whether AeP is a political or a non-political entity as the former BJP MP has repeatedly dithered on the issue of identity of his party. His initial argument of projecting it as a forum for disgruntled and like-minded persons from other political parties to beeline under his leadership to ultimately pave way for another front has since evaporated in the air.
The AAP smarting under its own internal problems and Sidhu’s falling image due to indecisiveness has infused life and energy into Congress under former Chief Minister Capt Amrinder Singh. Under the circumstances it would be now very difficult for Sidhu to strike a desirable deal with Congress unless he scales down and either enters into a deal or joins the Congress unconditionally.
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