Rs 500 crore to become Punjab CM: Navjot Kaur Sidhu's remark sparks row in Punjab
PTC News Desk: Navjot Kaur Sidhu, Congress leader and wife of cricketer-turned-politician Navjot Sidhu, has sparked a row in Punjab by alleging that is takes Rs 500 crore to become state's chief minister.
Speaking to reporters after meeting Governor Gulab Chand Kataria on Saturday, Navjot Kaur said they “speak only for Punjab”, but lack the kind of money she alleges influences top political appointments.
“We do not have Rs 500 crore to give to sit in the chief minister’s chair,” she said, adding that no one had demanded money from them but “the one who gives a suitcase of Rs 500 crore becomes the CM”.
The former MLA spoke to the media on Saturday evening after meeting Punjab Governor Gulab Chand Kataria about several issues, including what she called the worsening law and order situation in the state.
Without naming any party directly while mentioning the alleged Rs 500-crore offer, she said Navjot Singh Sidhu would only return to active politics in the Congress if he was declared the party’s chief ministerial candidate in Punjab.
Referring to internal conflicts, she claimed that the Congress already had “five people” projecting themselves as CM candidates, and said they were damaging the party. She added that they did not have money to give to any political party, but believed they could turn Punjab into a “golden state”. Responding to a question, she said her husband remained firmly loyal to the Congress and particularly to Priyanka Gandhi Vadra.
State Congress president Amrinder Singh Raja Warring refused to comment, saying the party high command would decide on the matter. However, former Deputy Chief Minister and current Gurdaspur MP Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa said the Sidhu family should be removed from the party. He asked whether Sidhu would disclose how much money he spent when he became Punjab Congress president, a role he said was nearly equal to being Chief Minister, and who he gave it to. Randhawa added that Sidhu had caused major damage to the Congress by speaking according to a script written by the Opposition and was now betraying the party.
- With inputs from agencies
