Has Sidhu polarised Punjab once again?

New Delhi, Feb 7 (IANS) Ever since he visited Pakistan and hugged its army chief, "nationalist" Indians have been deeply offended and spoken out against Navjot Singh Sidhu's allegedly pro-Pakistan views.

The sentiment seems to have seeped into Punjab, says a CVoter survey conducted for IANS across the state covering all social and religious groups, apart from party supporters.

The dislike for Sidhu amongst non-Sikhs and even non Jat-Sikhs is palpable. Respondents were asked the question: Has Sidhu proven to be an asset or a liability for the Congress? As many as 54.3 per cent of Dalit Sikhs consider him a liability. That's not surprising given the barbs Sidhu has been throwing at the Dalit Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi, going public suggesting that party bosses in Delhi want a weak leader and Chief Minister they can control. More than 42 per cent of Hindu voters also find him a liability, as do more than 46 per cent of BJP supporters. The funny thing is that 40.3 per cent of Congress supporters think Sidhu is a liability while 34 per cent consider him an asset.

The respondents were further asked: To what extent do you blame Sidhu for the infighting in the Congress? The maximum blame came from Hindu voters amongst whom 67 per cent of the respondents either blamed Sidhu entirely or to a large extent. When asked who was a better leader between the two: Captain Amarinder Singh and Sidhu, the highest percentage among all social and religious groups, 48.5 per cent of Hindus, clearly preferred the Captain. That should worry the Congress because while AAP was already threatening to take away a chunk of Sikh votes, the newly-formed alliance between the Captain and the BJP threatens to take away a chunk of Hindu votes.

Analysts feel Sidhu's words and actions have alienated the Hindu community.