Amarinder Singh awaits EC nod for party name, symbol

“I am forming a party. But I cannot tell you the name right now. When the Election Commission (EC) approves the name and symbol, only then I can tell you. Let us wait for the EC to approve,” he said during his first press conference after resigning as the chief minister last month.

He also said that he will meet union home minister Amit Shah on Thursday to continue his efforts to resolve the issues of farmers who have been protesting against the Centre’s three new agriculture laws. Singh had resigned as the Punjab chief minister amid a bitter power tussle with Punjab Congress chief Navjot Singh Sidhu.

Responding to a question, Singh claimed many people from the Congress are in touch with him and that they will come out in the open when the time comes.

“Obviously many people are with us. We are waiting for the opportune moment. But I will not take their names as my supporters are already being harassed,” he said. Asked how many MLAs are in touch with him, the former CM said, “If Rahul Gandhi needs to have back-to-back meetings with Punjab Congress MLAs, what does it mean?” On not resigning yet from the Congress, he said, “I have spent 50 years in the Congress, how does it matter if I stay for another 10 days?” Singh had last week said that he would soon launch his own party, and that he was hopeful of a seat adjustment with the BJP provided the ongoing farmers’ stir was resolved in their interest. He also asserted that he had never spoken of aligning with the BJP, and that all he wanted was seat sharing.

“In military parlance, it means concentration of forces,” he said while stating that he had, however, not yet talked to the saffron party in this regard. The leader further said he had no intention of aligning with the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), but only with breakaway Akali groups. Meanwhile, Sidhu took another dig at Singh and called him the “negative force” stalling development in Punjab.