Sidhu steps down as Punjab Cong chief after Sonia Gandhi's order

His resignation comes a day after Congress chief Sonia Gandhi asked the PCC presidents of Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Goa and Manipur to put in their resignations in order to facilitate reorganisation of the party.

Punjab Congress president Navjot Singh Sidhu on Wednesday submitted his resignation from the post following his party's debacle in the recently held assembly elections. His resignation comes a day after Congress chief Sonia Gandhi asked the PCC presidents of Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Goa and Manipur to put in their resignations in order to facilitate reorganisation of the party.

Punjab Congress chief Navjot Singh Sidhu resigned after his party's debacle in the recently held assembly elections. (ANI file)

The cricketer-turned-politician shared information about his resignation on his twitter handle.

“As desired by the Congress President I have sent my resignation …,” his tweet read.

In his resignation letter written to Sonia Gandhi, Sidhu wrote, “I hereby resign as President (PPCC).”

The Congress faced a humiliating defeat in Punjab, winning only 18 seats, while the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) bagged 92 seats in the 117-member Punjab Assembly.

Sidhu lost to the AAP's Jeevanjot Kaur from the Amritsar East Assembly seat by 6,750 votes. He had taken over as the Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee president in July last year.

Several Punjab Congress candidates on Tuesday had blamed indiscipline and infighting among the state unit leaders for the party's crushing defeat.