‘From Day 1, Cong said it won’t touch AAP. Our stance has been vindicated’

After the Congress’ surprise comeback in Punjab, which saw the party win seven of the 13 Lok Sabha seats, leader of the Opposition Partap Singh Bajwa tells TOI that not allying with the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) was a conscious decision that bore fruit. Edited excerpts.How did Congress do so well after being wiped out in the 2022 assembly polls?[Congress] state president Raja Warring and I worked together. Congress’ biggest handicap has been lack of unity at the top in the state. We lost because then CM Amarinder Singh, Navjot Sidhu and state chief Sunil Jakhar pulled in different directions.For us, the only effective platform available was the Punjab assembly. Our brilliant performance there helped us, despite AAP having 92 MLAs and Congress 18, and lopsided control of the camera in the assembly that focused only on treasury benches. Despite that, we put the CM in the dock, called out his misgovernance, took it to the people, and regained acceptance.Had AAP government not controlled the camera in the assembly, we would have decimated AAP in the Lok Sabha polls. I even moved the high court to seek impartiality in coverage. In the Lok Sabha polls, we have gained 38 assembly segments, AAP score has slid from 92 to 32. medium110799860Punjab has elected two radicals in Khadoor Sahib (Amritpal Singh) and Faridkot (Sarabjeet Singh Khalsa).Punjabis always react against government excesses and they have reacted against the anti-farmer policies and their treatment during the long struggle. Punjab’s identity is “jai jawan, jai kisan”. But Army recruitment was discontinued and farmers were sidelined, which hurt people.And people heard the arguments that gangsters who killed big names such as [Sidhu] Moosewala, or had abducted people, were roaming free or were lodged in local jails, while some are sent to Dibrugarh without any crime, as such, committed. It’s just reaction. And it’s momentary.One doesn’t know if these two fringe MPs will at all come to Parliament. It’s a one-time vote. We will see what happens. Punjabis are careful, and want to maintain peace at all costs.Watch: Amritpal and Sarabjeet win from Punjab medium nocaptionhttp://youtu.be/x9KEyNxL8nM?si=igczZlhTQBZ_SEzdCan this be stopped before it becomes normal?It’s a vote against the BJP and [Narendra] Modi. A section was polarised that unfortunately led to counter-polarisation. The same formula that was tried 40 years ago is being tried again, for which Punjab is still paying a big price. When you raise a religious slogan to polarise one community for political gains, it can trigger counter polarisation. The fringe element that we have controlled for 40 years is again raising its head, just because of current policies, the Centre and its agencies.The BJP’s campaign brought it [seat tally] to zero, down from two. But it led to two fringe elements getting elected. I hold the BJP responsible for what’s happening in Punjab… seriously advising BJP… don’t fish in troubled waters.How did the Congress manage the contradiction of allying with AAP as part of the INDIA bloc, but fighting them in Punjab?From Day 1, I said we won’t touch AAP. Our political stance has been vindicated. Had the Congress not allied with AAP in Delhi, it would have won majority of seats. We won 12 in Rajasthan, in UP 43, and in Haryana 5. Delhi is the same region. Congress and AAP share the same vote base, so an alliance is myopic. We have decimated AAP to half in Punjab. From 38 assembly segments, we have to now go to 80.Many Congress seniors in Punjab joined the BJP. Will you let them return?We will never take back those who backstabbed the party. Polls have proved they were just big names and faces. Preneet Kaur, wife of Amarinder, lost in her family city. Ravneet Bittu lost in Ludhiana. Rana Sodhi lost from Ferozepur, which is the BJP state chief’s home. Punjab has shown the door to turncoats who ditched the party for personal benefit. In fact, Punjabis and Bengalis have behaved as one. The BJP tried everything but failed miserably in Bengal, the same happened in Punjab.