Punjab Congress crisis: Amarinder Singh to meet Sonia on Tuesday

Amid efforts to find a solution to the rift in the Punjab Congress, state Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh will meet Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Tuesday, sources said.

The central leadership has been trying to find a way out of factionalism ahead of assembly polls next year and had constituted a panel that held talks with Amarinder Singh and MLAs including Navjot Singh Sidhu, who has been articulating his differences with the chief minister.

The central leadership is seeking to bring about changes in the state unit by keeping the Chief Minister in the loop while also looking at a balance in terms of caste and community.

Sidhu had met Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and former Congress president Rahul Gandhi in New Delhi last week and presented his side. Other senior leaders of the Punjab Congress had also held meetings with Rahul Gandhi for four days in the national capital.

Party leader Harish Rawat, who is AICC in-charge of Punjab and a member of the panel, had expressed hope after Sidhu's meeting with Rahul and Priyanka that the issues concerning the Punjab unit of the party will be resolved soon.

Punjab Assembly polls, scheduled for next year, are being considered crucial for Congress as it is one of the few states where the party is still in power.

( With inputs from ANI )