Ludhiana, December 03: In opposition to Punjab Cabinet Minister Navjot Singh Sidhu’s remarks on Captain Amarinder Singh, posters were seen on the streets of Ludhiana reading ‘Punjab’s captain is our captain’. Congress MP from the city, Ravneet Singh Bittu said also demanded an apology from Sidhu over his remarks. He said, “All the streets in Ludhiana are filled with posters that say 'Punjab's captain is our captain'. This is people's sentiment. Navjot Singh Sidhu should apologise.”

The Punjab Minister is facing flak since the time he said that Congress president Rahul Gandhi was his captain. The cricketer-turned-politician during his interaction with media in Hyderabad on Friday, said that Gandhi sent him to neighbouring country-Pakistan to attend the groundbreaking ceremony of the Kartarpur Corridor project. Taking a jibe at Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh, Sidhu said, “Rahul is my captain. Wherever I went, it was with his approval." He further added, “Rahul Gandhi is the captain of the captain (Amarinder Singh) also.” The Congress leader, however, described the Punjab Chief Minister as a "father figure" to him.

Yesterday, three of cabinet ministers of Punjab demanded Sidhu’s resignation for mocking the chief minister. Rural Development and Panchayat minister Tript Rajinder Singh Bajwa, Revenue and Rehabilitation minister Sukhbinder Singh Sarkaria and Sports Minister Rana Gurmeet Singh Sodhi asked Sidhu to resign from cabinet if he doesn't consider Amarinder Singh his "captain". Yesterday, Sidhu also tweeted clarifying his statement. In the tweet, he wrote, “Get your facts right before you distort them, Rahul Gandhi Ji never asked me to go to Pakistan. The whole world knows I went to Pakistan on Prime Minister Imran Khan’s personal invite.”

The Punjab Minister was criticised for praising Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan during his visit for stone laying ceremony of the Kartarpur Corridor. He even called Khan an “angel”. He was also targeted over a photograph which showed him posing with Pakistan Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee head and Pro Khalistan leader Gopal Singh Chawla.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Dec 03, 2018 12:50 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).