Days after Punjab Cabinet Minister Navjot Singh Sidhu said it was Rahul Gandhi who sent him to Pakistan, and that he was his “captain” and “the captain of the Captain (Amrinder Singh),” speaking to the media in Rajasthan, Sidhu clarified that he will sort out the issue with Amarinder Singh himself.
“He (Amarinder Singh) is a father figure. I love and respect him. I will sort it out myself.”Punjab Cabinet Minister Navjot Singh Sidhu
Navjot Singh Sidhu had also clarified on Friday, 30 November, that he didn't go there on the instructions of his party Chief Rahul Gandhi. “The whole world knows I went on PM Imran Khan’s personal invite,” he wrote on Twitter:
Captain Sahab Is Like a Father: Navjot Kaur Sidhu
Earlier, on Sunday, 2 December, his wife Navjot Kaur Sidhu had clarified that he did not mean any disrespect to Punjab CM Captain Amarinder Singh.
According to ANI, Navjot Kaur Sidhu also asserted that her husband’s statement “should be read as a whole and not in incomplete bits.”
“Navjot ji has repeatedly said that Captain Sahab is like his father. We have always made it clear that Capt Sahab’s respect and honour is above everything. Sidhu’s statements should be read as a whole and not in incomplete bits.”Navjot Kaur Sidhu
In the day, Sidhu had triggered the controversy when he said that Gandhi had sent him to Pakistan for attending the inauguration ceremony of the Kartarpur corridor and that the Congress president was his "captain.”
On Friday, to a query at a news conference, Sidhu had said, "Rahul Gandhi is my captain. It is he who sent me to Pakistan. Rahul Gandhi is the also the captain of the Captain (Amarinder)," Sidhu told a press conference in Hyderabad when asked about Singh's disapproval of his Pakistan trip.
Sidhu said 50-100 Congress leaders, including Shashi Tharoor, Harish Rawat and Randeep Surjewala "patted" him on his back for the visit.
The Congress leader, however, described the Punjab chief minister as a “father figure” to him.
‘When 10,000 People Take Selfies, How Do You Know Who Is Chawla?’
Replying to a question about Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi's remark that Prime Minister Imran Khan's "googly" had compelled India to send two Union ministers for the Kartarpur event, Sidhu said, "How do you bowl a googly to a batsman. I have never left such a ball."
On the controversy over his photograph with Khalistani leader Gopal Singh Chawla, the Punjab minister said 10,000 people took selfies with him and he did not know the man.
"When 10,000 people are taking selfies with you, how do you know who is Chawla? How? This is absolute rubbish. The last time when I went to Pakistan, I was sitting with someone who was again controversial,” Sidhu said.
‘Only a Popular Person Can Win Six Elections’
"Am I supposed to see where I sit. When you are going to another country, you are looked after by them. Anybody who comes to me... I don't break hearts... come here and take a photograph," he said, adding that the man identified as Chawla was seen "everywhere" during the trip, including with Union Minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal.
Responding to another question about Imran Khan saying that Sidhu could easily win an election in Pakistan, the former cricketer said what the Pakistan premier had meant was that he (Sidhu) was very popular in that country and that people there loved him.
"I have won six elections here. Only a popular person can win six elections. Ask Smriti Irani (Union minister) how many elections has she won," he said.
‘Sidhu Should Resign’: Rajinder Singh Bajwa
Punjab Cabinet Minister Tript Rajinder Singh Bajwa sought Sidhu's resignation over his jibe at Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh, news agency PTI reported.
“If he does not consider Capt Amarinder as his captain then he should resign on moral grounds from the cabinet and do whatever work is assigned to him by Rahul Gandhi.”Tript Rajinder Singh Bajwa to PTI.
According to The Times of India, Punjab Cabinet ministers Rana Gurminder Singh Sodhi and Sukbinder Singh Sarkaria have joined Bajwa in demanding Sidhu’s resignation, while Gurjit Singh Aujl, the party’s Amrtisar MP, took to openly criticising Sidhu.
This is Not Kapil Sharma’s Show: Sadhu Singh Dharamsot
Punjab’s minister of forest expressed his sadness over Sidhu’s remarks, reported ANI. He also asserted that “this is not Kapil Sharma’s show,” and Sidhu should show respect. He said:
I was a little sad hearing this (Navjot Sidhu’s remarks), of course Rahul Gandhi is our Indian captain but Sidhu forgot that Amarinder ji is our CM. He should show respect, this is not Kapil Sharma’s show.
Sidhu’s Remark ‘Unfortunate’ and ‘Uncalled for’: Aruna Chaudhary
Women and Child Development and Transport Minister Aruna Chaudhary said, "What Navjot Singh Sidhu said about Capt Amarinder Singh is unfortunate. Such things should not have been said by him.” She added:
Captain Amarinder Singh is our undisputed leader. He is captain of the party in the state. He was chief ministerial candidate in the last Assembly elections and under him the party returned to power with an overwhelming majority. At the same time, Rahul Gandhi is captain of entire Congress, no one is disputing this fact. But what Sidhu has said about captain sahib is unfortunate.
Sack Sidhu Immediately: Tarun Chugh
BJP National Secretary Tarun Chugh alleged that Sidhu is a man of U-turns and should be sacked immediately. He said:
When Sidhu was in the BJP, he hailed the contribution of Atal Behari Vajpayee, LK Advani, Narendra Modi, Arun Jaitley. He used to ridicule (former PM) Manmohan Singh by terming him ‘Mouni Baba’. He is a man of U-turns. It seems his lust for power would end with accepting Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan as his Captain.
While Union Minister Vijay Tampa said Sidhu has “lost mental balance,” Revenue and Rehabilitation Minister Sukhbinder Singh Sarkaria and Sports Minister Rana Gurmeet Singh Sodhi called for Sidhu's resignation from the state Cabinet.
(With inputs from PTI.)
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