Not used to hearing ‘no’, Indira Gandhi got up from her chair and left the room, leaving Amarinder Singh alone. Torn between his religion, political future and close ties with the Gandhi family, Amarinder left his resignation on his desk and left the room soon after.
Eminent journalist Khushwant Singh in his bookAmarinder Singh: The People’s Maharaja, an authorized biography, in 1984 describes a candid conversation between Indira Gandhi and Capt Amarinder Singh After Operation Blue Star, which later left Parliament and the Congress Party.
In his 52-year career, moments of such defiance have defined the politics of the 79-year-old Patiala descendant. His short stint in the army along with his participation in the 1965 war ensured his strong views on nationalism along with his political career.
The fact that he brought his battle-hardened approach to politics when he won Punjab for the Congress in 2017 sparked a massive Narendra Modi wave across the country. The victory was also significant as the Congress came back to power after being out for a decade since its 2007 defeat.
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The Captain has been fiercely vocal on issues of nationalism and strained relations with Pakistan. He left no stone unturned to criticize his then cabinet colleague Navjot Singh Sidhu when he went to Pakistan for Imran Khan’s swearing-in ceremony and hugged ISI chief General Bajwa there.
Simply put, Captain Amarinder Singh has not been a ‘pure Congressman’. He had a seven-year stint with the Akali Dal, which ended in 1992 when he broke away to form his own front, the Shiromani Akali Dal (Panthik), which later joined the Congress in 1998.
He returned to the Congress and became the Chief Minister of Punjab from 2002 to 2007. He served as the state unit president on two occasions from 1999 to 2002 and 2010 to 2013.
Capt Amarinder Singh did what he has been doing even while resigning as the Chief Minister of Punjab, stick to his decision and listen to his heart.
He has been known to be an outspoken person by nature since his previous tenure, at the cost of not following the party line and sometimes even at the cost of taking over the party high command; Congress is not so specific to culture.
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During his first stint as chief minister in 2002, Amarinder Singh had troubled party chief Sonia Gandhi when she pulled the state out of the Sutlej Yamuna Canal Link (SYS) agreement, without keeping her in the loop. Sonia had reportedly even refused to meet him for months. His decision not only helped him in Punjab but also boosted his image at the national level. Amarinder proved that he works with an independent mind.
The Captain knew how to resolve issues and spoke his mind when it came to national security. Addressing the Punjab Assembly after the Pulwama attack, a distraught Chief Minister said, “I want to tell General Bajwa (Pakistan Army Chief) that if you are a Punjabi, we are also a Punjabi and if you want to enter our Dare. Zone, we’ll fix you up.”
When he walked out of the Raj Bhavan after resigning on Saturday evening, he insisted that there was “politics of the future” left in him, declaring that the fire inside him had not yet extinguished.
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