Summary:
Chandigarh, Sep 18 (PTI) One of the strongest regional satraps of the Congress, Amarinder Singh was the leader who put the party back in the saddle in Punjab after an intensely fought poll battle that decimated the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) and crushed the Aam Aadmi Party"s (AAP) dream of expanding its footprint beyond Delhi.
The 79-year-old widely respected and popular leader steered the Congress in 2017 to a landslide victory in the 117-member assembly to occupy the chief minister"s post for the second time.
The "maharaja"s" win in Punjab after 10 years had also rekindled the hopes for the revival of the grand old party.
But now all seems not well in the party"s state unit as over 50 MLAs have written to Congress chief Sonia Gandhi seeking that Singh be replaced as chief minister, a development that comes just about four months ahead of assembly elections in the state.
Singh has now decided to quit from the post of chief minister.
Belonging to a very rare breed of politicians who have seen action in the Indo-Pak war, Singh tasted success in the 2017 polls after Akali Dal supremo Parkash Singh Badal foiled his previous attempts to become chief minister in 2007 and 2012.