Ahead of the Cabinet expansion with the possibility of reshuffle of some portfolios, the Chief Minister called Sidhu at his farmhouse in Siswan, near here, for lunch.

 

"It was a warm and cordial luncheon meeting that saw Chief Minister Amarinder Singh and Navjot Singh Sidhu discuss a host of important political matters of Punjab and national interest. The two leaders spent a pleasant over an hour sharing thoughts on vital issues," Chief Minister's Media Advisor Raveen Thukral said in a tweet.

 

Sources privy to the development said the meeting could soon see the re-induction of Sidhu into the Cabinet in the coming days.

 

The two leaders had not been seeing eye-to-eye for quite some time and the meeting was seen in political circles as a bid to bury the hatchet. Sidhu had been lying low ever since his resignation from the state Cabinet in July last year.

 

Political observers told IANS the efforts of Congress' state in charge Harish Rawat have borne results as he was instrumental in pacifying Sidhu.

 

He had called Sidhu a "national asset" because of his reputation as a crowd puller and hinted at a national role for him in the party.

 

Sidhu formally resigned on July 14, 2019, as Minister for Power and New and Renewable Energy Sources, the portfolio he had not taken charge of.

 

Almost a month earlier, he had been divested of the charge of Local Government and Tourism and Cultural Affairs portfolios in a Cabinet reshuffle, the first after the Lok Sabha election.