'Won't Let Sidhu Win': Amarinder Singh Announces Exit From Congress

Former Punjab CM Amarinder Singh reiterated that he will quit the Congress but will not be joining the BJP.

File image of former Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh.

(Photo: PTI)

Former Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh on Thursday, 30 September, reiterated that he will quit the Congress party but will not be joining the opponent Bharatiya Janata Party.

"I am not remaining in Congress, I am not joining the BJP," he stated, news agency ANI reported.

The statement comes days after Singh, amid an ongoing feud with Navjot Singh Sidhu, resigned from the post of Punjab chief minister. Days after Singh's exit, Sidhu also resigned as the Punjab Congress chief, augmenting the crisis within the state unit of the party.

Speaking about Sidhu on Thursday, Singh told reporters, "During my tenure as chief minister, there were (Punjab Congress) chiefs, but what Navjot Singh Sidhu did has never been done before."

"...I had said it before also that Navjot Singh Sidhu is not the right man for Punjab, and if he contests, I will not let him win...," he was quoted as saying by ANI.

"If the party loses the majority, then the Assembly Speaker has to take the decision," he said, when questioned about the possibility of a floor test in the Punjab Assembly.

Singh, who is visiting Delhi, had met with Home Minister Amit Shah and National Security Adviser Ajit Doval, fuelling speculation about his transition to the BJP.

Singh, however, has refuted the conjecture.

"We discussed security-related issues, can't share them here," he stated, when asked about his meeting with Doval.

"(I am) not joining BJP but will quit Congress. Can't stay in a party where I'm insulted and not trusted. Still exploring options," Singh had said earlier on Thursday.

Criticising the path that the Congress is treading upon, Singh, earlier on Thursday, had cited a survey undertaken by the party recently and said that it indicated AAP's rise and Congress' decline by 20 percent, NDTV reported.

(With inputs from ANI and NDTV.)