Ambika Soni declined Sonia Gandhi’s request to become Punjab CM after Amarinder Singh’s exit

New Delhi, 6/8: Sonia Gandhi wanted Ambika Soni to succeed Amarinder Singh as Punjab Chief Minister after his resignation but a new book says the senior leader refused to play into the Gandhi family’s hands and lead the party to an “impending defeat”.

A trusted lieutenant of Sonia Gandhi, Soni told her that choosing a non-Sikh to head the government in Punjab would have left the community with a feeling that it has been wronged by the Congress, which has become acceptable to them after the 1984 riot.