It is often said that history repeats itself. What is usually left unsaid is that repetition can be painful when lessons from the past are ignored. That is precisely what appears to be unfolding in the Punjab Congress.

The faces may have changed, but the nature of the infighting remains disturbingly familiar to what the party witnessed in the state unit nearly five years ago.

The only difference is that in 2021, the Congress was fighting to retain power in Punjab. Today, it has little to defend and much to gain after the humiliating drubbing it suffered at the hands of the Aam Aadmi Party in the 2022 Assembly elections. Yet, instead of rebuilding itself with discipline and humility, the party seems to have reopened old wounds.

Old Rivalries Resurface

The roots of the past friction go back to 2017, when the claims of cricketer-turned-politician Navjot Singh Sidhu were set aside in favour of the ageing Captain Amarinder Singh. Sidhu, at his abrasive and combative best, behaved as though he were still in the middle of a cricket match, swinging at every ball that came his way. The Captain, instead of trying to manage or accommodate his energetic colleague, appeared more interested in pushing him out of the team.

Sidhu resigned from the ministry, but he did not accept defeat. The battle within the party continued. When he was later appointed president of the Punjab........

© Free Press Journal