Editor's Pick: Sidhu leaves Congress high and dry

Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee chief Navjot Singh Sidhu has resigned from his post, saying he "can’t compromise on Punjab’s future and its welfare agenda." His resignation was followed by the resignation of Minister Razia Sultana in a show of support. Mr. Sidhu, who took charge of the Congress's State unit in July, has resigned within days of a major overhaul in the Congress government in the State -- the replacement of Capt. Amarinder Singh with Charanjit Singh Channi as the Chief Minister. The Hindu's Vikas Vasudeva is reporting that Mr. Sidhu is apparently miffed about his choice of Ministers and officials not being accommodated in the new Cabinet announced by Mr. Channi earlier today. Mr. Sidhu, whose rise to the top was apparently aided by the Gandhi family, did not get the High Command's support in this matter. After Congress took power in the State in 2017 under Capt. Amarinder's leadership, Mr. Sidhu had joined the Cabinet; but he soon fell out with the CM and resigned. By propping him up as the State unit leader and then forcing the resignation of Capt. Amarinder, the party leadership seemed to indicate that the upcoming Assembly election will be fought with Mr. Sidhu at the helm. However, if that was the plan, it is in tatters now. In an editorial following Mr. Sidhu's appointment as party leader, The Hindu had warned that by weakening Capt. Amarinder's position, the Congress was repeating the past mistake of pushing out regional satraps. Mr. Sidhu, the editorial noted, had "no track record of any political activism, public service or being ideologically aligned to the Congress in any manner." In fact, Mr. Sidhu had been with the BJP for over a decade before joining the Congress. "Handing over the command to such a turncoat shows the complete bankruptcy of the Congress and an insult to those who fight the long battle," the editorial went on to say. Mr. Sidhu seems to be living up to the words of that editorial by leaving the Congress high and dry at the moment of need. This unenviable scenario that the Congress is facing now is what makes the story our top pick of the day. The Hindu Editorials Tackling the Maoists: On Left Wing Extremism No clear winner: On post-Merkel Germany Was this newsletter forwarded to you? Head over to our newsletter subscription page to sign up for Editor's Pick and more. Click here Try out The Hindu's daily news quiz Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the ---- Digital Mission in New Delhi on Monday. 1. Ayushman Bharat 2. Swasth Bharat 3. Swachh Bharat 4. Coronamukr Bharat To find out the answer and play the full quiz, click here. [logo] Editor's Pick 29 SEPTEMBER 2021 [The Hindu logo] In the Editor's Pick newsletter, The Hindu explains why a story was important enough to be carried on the front page of today's edition of our newspaper. [Arrow]( [Open in browser]( [Mail icon]( [More newsletters]( Sidhu leaves Congress high and dry [Sidhu leaves Congress high and dry] Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee chief [Navjot Singh Sidhu has resigned]( from his post, saying he "can’t compromise on Punjab’s future and its welfare agenda." His resignation was followed by the resignation of Minister Razia Sultana in a show of support. Mr. Sidhu, who took charge of the Congress's State unit in July, has resigned within days of a major overhaul in the Congress government in the State -- the replacement of Capt. Amarinder Singh with [Charanjit Singh Channi]( as the Chief Minister. The Hindu's Vikas Vasudeva is reporting that Mr. Sidhu is apparently miffed about his choice of Ministers and officials not being accommodated in the new Cabinet announced by Mr. Channi earlier today. Mr. Sidhu, whose rise to the top was apparently aided by the Gandhi family, did not get the High Command's support in this matter. After Congress took power in the State in 2017 under Capt. Amarinder's leadership, Mr. Sidhu had joined the Cabinet; but he soon fell out with the CM and resigned. By propping him up as the State unit leader and then forcing the resignation of Capt. Amarinder, the party leadership seemed to indicate that the upcoming Assembly election will be fought with Mr. Sidhu at the helm. However, if that was the plan, it is in tatters now. In an [editorial following Mr. Sidhu's appointment as party leader,]( The Hindu had warned that by weakening Capt. Amarinder's position, the Congress was repeating the past mistake of pushing out regional satraps. Mr. Sidhu, the editorial noted, had "no track record of any political activism, public service or being ideologically aligned to the Congress in any manner." In fact, Mr. Sidhu had been with the BJP for over a decade before joining the Congress. "Handing over the command to such a turncoat shows the complete bankruptcy of the Congress and an insult to those who fight the long battle," the editorial went on to say. Mr. Sidhu seems to be living up to the words of that editorial by leaving the Congress high and dry at the moment of need. This unenviable scenario that the Congress is facing now is what makes the story our top pick of the day. The Hindu Editorials [Arrow][Tackling the Maoists: On Left Wing Extremism]( [Arrow][No clear winner: On post-Merkel Germany](  [underlineimg] Was this newsletter forwarded to you? Head over to our newsletter subscription page to sign up for Editor's Pick and more. [Click here]( Try out The Hindu's daily news quiz Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the ---- Digital Mission in New Delhi on Monday. 1. Ayushman Bharat 2. Swasth Bharat 3. Swachh Bharat 4. 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