Punjab: Former ministers Balbir Sidhu, Gurpreet Kangar miffed at missing ministerial berths

On the other hand, listing his achievements as the state Health Minister, Sidhu, got emotional during the press conference and said that during the Covid-19 pandemic, he ensured that the healthcare system did not flounder and worked efficiently. “I worked tirelessly to ensure that the people of the state do not face any problems. In the past years, we streamlined health infra at the grassroots level. This is not the way to treat committed party workers who have given the best of their life to serving the cause of the party,” said Sidhu.

The two former ministers have written to the high command to express their displeasure at being left out of the Punjab cabinet which was sworn in on Sunday. They have asked the reasons due to which they were ignored by the high command. They, however, have made it clear that they are with the new Chief Minister, Charanjit Singh Channi. “We supported former Chief Minister, Captain Amarinder Singh, as advised by the high command. Now, we will work along with the new CM as per the instructions of the party high command,” they said.

“If the high command would have asked for our resignations, we would have resigned on our own. What has been done is quite embarrassing and humiliating,” said Kangar, adding that his “loyalty towards former Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh had cost him dearly, which was not fair as every soldier had to be loyal to his commander.”

“Now, as a Congress soldier, I owe my allegiance to the present Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi. But if the loyalty to the party causes the kind of outcome that has happened in my case, then it is really sad. The high command should answer why I have been ignored despite so many achievements. I was responsible as the Revenue Minister for computerising land records,” said Kangar.

Sidhu added, “The work done by me during the peak of the Covid-19 pandemic under was even recognised by the Central government, which praised the model created by me.”