New Delhi: BJP leader Navjot Singh Sidhu quit as a member of Parliament on Monday, a move that was instantly seen as a precursor to his exiting the party. “The people of Punjab are looking for a change,” was his telling comment to media just before he put in his papers.
There is a strong buzz that the 52-year-old former cricketer and commentator will join Arvind Kejriwal’s Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), which is campaigning aggressively in Punjab ahead of elections in the state next year.
Sources close to Mr Sidhu and AAP indicate that he could be the party’s chief ministerial candidate in Punjab.
Mr Sidhu, who is also a popular television personality, was nominated to the Rajya Sabha in April.
He had been upset when he was asked to make way for Arun Jaitley to contest from Amritsar during the 2014 national election and denied the chance to contest.
He had represented the Amritsar constituency for 10 years. Mr Jaitley lost the election.
Mr Sidhu’s wife Navjot Kaur, who is a lawmaker in Punjab and a parliamentary secretary in the state’s Akali Dal-BJP government, is also set to resign, say reports.
She had announced her resignation on Facebook earlier this year but later changed her mind.
(Agencies)
