Punjab Congress president Navjot Singh Sidhu and chief minister Amarinder Singh on Friday agreed to set up a “strategic policy group” to ensure better coordination between the party and the government and expedite implementation of government projects, but party insiders claimed that the differences between the two leaders were far from over.

The 10-member group headed by the chief minister will have three cabinet ministers — local government minister Brahm Mohindra, finance minister Manpreet Singh Badal and social security minister Aruna Chaudhary — Sidhu, four state Congress working presidents — Kuljit Singh Nagra, Sukhwinder Singh Danny, Sangat Singh Gilzian and Pawan Goel — and MLA Pargat Singh.

The group will hold weekly meetings in addition to ministers being asked to visit party offices by rotation to meet MLAs and political workers to discuss their concerns.

The chief minister himself stressed the need for better coordination with the party, probably responding positively to the charge of being disconnected with the organisation for a good part of his tenure.

The central leadership has made it clear that both the chief minister and the Punjab unit president will have to work together despite personal and political differences.

Sidhu described Friday’s meeting with Amarinder as “highly positive” and put out the details of the roster duties of ministers at the party office. He also tweeted the letter he had written to Amarinder on the importance of Congress workers and demanding the ministers’ presence at the party office to listen to the grievances and concerns of people.

Sources, however, said Sidhu and Amarinder continued to work at cross-purposes and that expecting a genuine rapport was futile now.

A Congress leader told The Telegraph over the phone from Chandigarh: “The points raised by the state unit clearly expose the chief minister’s failure to attend to the political needs of the party. Why has the need for a demand and an agreement on better coordination arisen and is being worked out just before the (Assembly) elections (next year)? Sidhu has repeatedly said the promises made in the last election have not been fulfilled….”