Punjab saga: Captain Amarinder meets Amit Shah, sets stage for new political equations in state

New Delhi, September 29

In a move signalling shifting power equations in poll-bound Punjab, Congress veteran and former state chief minister Capt Amarinder Singh met Home Minister Amit Shah for nearly an hour on Wednesday and discussed the ongoing farmers’ agitation, urging early resolution through repeal of farm laws.

The meeting, which bears huge political implications for Punjab’s electoral arithmetic, comes in the wake of the ongoing Punjab Congress crisis and Captain’s resignation as Chief Minister.

This is the first meeting that Amarinder Singh had with Amit Shah after quitting as CM. The personal touch of today’s engagement — at Shah’s Krishna Menon residence — makes it significant and holds possibilities for the emergence of a future Captain-BJP axis in Punjab, a state where the saffron party doesn’t have a face after the SAD walked out of the NDA. Sources said any future alignment with Captain would need to stand on a solid ground with farmers’ issues emerging as an area of convergence.That explains why Capt raised farm agitation with Shah today, setting the stage for potential future resolution of a movement that has lasted over 10 months.

“Met Union Home Minister, discussed the prolonged farmers’ agitation and urged HM to resolve the crisis urgently with the repeal of farm laws, guaranteed MSP besides supporting Punjab in crop diversification. No farmers, no food (sic),” Capt tweeted after the meeting.

Asked if Captain could join the BJP, sources said it was too early for that and the current political logic was against a formal joining of hands, considering the farmers’ agitation. “There is no meeting ground right now,” said a source, adding that the alignment was a work in progress.

The BJP would want to use Captain’s credentials in Punjab to resolve the farmers’ agitation. “If (Captain’s) suggestions are found workable, the government might revisit the farm laws which it has categorically said cannot be repealed. It remains to be seen how these issues pan out and whether Capt Amarinder can lead that resolution of the farmers’ issues, in which case the BJP would gain both in Punjab and UP. This is in the realm of possibility. Once a meeting ground emerges, a Capt-BJP axis could become possible,” a source said.

For Captain, the developments are part of natural progression after the Congress, in his words, “humiliated him”. The former CM had said at the time of resigning that he was preparing for a battle and would do “whatever it takes to keep Navjot Singh Sidhu from becoming CM.”

Ex-cm exposed: SAD

Chandigarh: The SAD said the meeting only proved the two were always together. “Captain had been supporting the BJP’s game plan all these months. Now the cat is out of the bag,” spokesperson Dr Daljit S Cheema said.

With Thanks, Reference to: https://www.tribuneindia.com/news/punjab/punjab-saga-captain-amarinder-meets-amit-shah-sets-stage-for-new-political-equations-in-state-318074