Chandigarh: Punjab Congress seems headed for another split with party MP from Patiala, Preneet Kaur, wife of former Punjab Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh, daring the party to take “whatever action it wishes” against her, and state Congress chief Amarinder Singh Raja Warring attacking her and her family over their “ingratitude and arrogance”.
The Congress had earlier suspended her for alleged anti-party activities and issued a show cause notice asking why she should not be expelled from the party. In a strongly-worded response to the notice, Kaur attacked Tariq Anwar, member secretary of the disciplinary action committee of the party, pointing out how those who had “left” the Congress were now questioning her.
“At the onset, I am surprised to see that a person who left the Congress in 1999 on the issue of Mrs. Gandhi being a foreign national, and stayed out for 20 years till 2019, and had to face Disciplinary action himself, is now questioning me on a so-called disciplinary matter (sic),” Preneet Kaur wrote in her letter.
Kaur was referring to Anwar, a Bihar politician who, along with Sharad Pawar and P.A. Sangma had left the party in 1999 over the issue of Sonia Gandhi’s foreign origin. Anwar was among the founding members of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) but returned to the Congress in October 2018.
Responding to her letter, Warring tweeted: “Parneet Kaur ji, your reply to show cause notice, oozes out ingratitude and arrogance towards party that made you and your family politically relevant, even ignoring their treacherous and deceitful traits (sic).”
Warring was referring to the fact that her husband Amarinder was forced to resign as CM in September 2021 and joined the BJP in September last year. However, Preneet Kaur remained with the Congress.
Sources in the party say that Kaur’s response suggests her preparedness to face expulsion from the party. “I believe the strategy would be to avoid a bypoll in Patiala. She is not likely to join the BJP immediately and remain an unattached MP till at least six months before the parliamentary elections next year,” said a close aide of the family talking to ThePrint.
She had not participated in the Rahul Gandhi-led Bharat Jodo Yatra when it was in Punjab last month.
Also read: Punjab governor Purohit lashes out at Mann govt again — ‘drugs in schools, jails havens for mafia’
‘Those who made allegations against me have many issues pending against them’
A former minister of state for external affairs and four-time MP Preneet Kaur also targeted Warring in her letter. “The congressmen in Punjab who have made allegations against me are those who have many issues pending against them. If you call my husband who was then Chief Minister, he will give you details about their doings. He protected them because they were from his own party. However, I suppose you will not do this (sic),” she wrote.
The 78-year-old MP further said that she will keep on working for her constituents. “As per your show cause notice I have always stood by my constituents, constituency and my state Punjab and have taken up their issues regardless of which Government is in power. I hope you are aware that every Minister of a Congress Government in any state has to meet his department Union Government Minister, in this case the BJP Government, to get their state’s issues resolved. This was done in the past by Congress Government in Punjab and today I am sure that it is being done by the Congress government in Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan as well. I too shall always continue to meet the State and Union Government to resolve such issues, whether you like it or not (sic),” she wrote.
Preneet Kaur ended the letter by saying, “As to action against me you are free to take whatever action you wish.”
In his reaction tweet, Warring wrote: “Ethically and morally speaking, you should have resigned and faced your constituents, as public voted for you as Congress candidate. As usual you chose few years and favors over moral reasons, and back stabbed Punjab and congress party by being in sinister conspiracy to damage both.”
“But the law of Karma is at play, you will reap what you sow,” he added.
Also read: Congress MLA Khaira seeks law against non-Punjabis buying land in state — ‘endangers our identity’