Longtime Aide to Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann Leaves AAP and Joins Congress

Manjit Singh Sidhu, a close friend and former Officer on Special Duty to Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, has left the Aam Aadmi Party to join the Congress party. Sidhu and Mann first met at Shaheed Udham Singh College in Sunam in 1990, building a friendship that spanned 36 years and included organizing each other's weddings alongside singer-actor Karamjit Anmol. Before entering politics, Sidhu spent fifteen years working in mainstream journalism before leaving the profession ahead of the 2017 Assembly elections to manage media operations for the AAP. Following the party's victory in the 2022 elections, Mann appointed Sidhu as his public relations OSD in January 2023, though he was later moved from that role and eventually worked as an office secretary at the AAP legislators' office in the Punjab Assembly.

Reasons and Reactions

Sidhu stated that he felt discarded and that Bhagwant Mann was helpless, adding that he preferred to stand with Punjab rather than stick to a chair. He clarified that his move was not about chasing positions or contesting elections, noting that he did not want to run for office and would have contested the 2022 Assembly election if he had wanted to be an MLA. While joining the Congress, Sidhu insisted that his political separation from Mann would not ruin their decades-long personal bond and promised that he would never leak any secrets. For the Congress party, Sidhu's entry is seen as a potential gain as they prepare for the 2027 Assembly elections and seek to challenge the ruling AAP by utilizing his insider understanding of the party's leadership and media machinery.

Context

Political party switches involving longtime loyalists and aides often highlight internal friction as state elections approach. Parties frequently welcome former insiders who understand organizational networks and media strategies to help strengthen their campaigns against incumbent rivals.