Chandigarh: On Friday, simmering discontent throughout the Punjab Meeting over the newly shaped Election Fee exploded, with former Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Chani convening a gathering of supporters and demanding an overhaul of the newly introduced provincial management.
In the meantime, Friday’s assembly between senior occasion chief and Gurdaspur MP Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa and Union Dwelling Minister Amit Shah over legislation and order in Punjab added one other layer of intrigue to the unfolding energy battle.
The event comes simply two days after the Congress management constituted the Punjab Election Fee forward of the 2027 meeting elections and put in Amarinder Singh Raja Waring because the Punjab Pradesh Congress Chairman and Partap Singh Bajwa because the Chief of the Opposition.
Mr. Channi was appointed because the chairman of the election committee and Mr. Randhawa because the chairman of the occasion’s core committee, however the composition of the committee didn’t fulfill the rival factions within the Punjab Meeting.
Channi held a closed-door assembly at his Morinda residence attended by over 60 leaders, together with former MLAs and 20 ministers. At the least 5 sitting MLAs together with Rana Gurjit Singh, Tripto Rajinder Singh Bajwa, Sukhbinder Singh Sarkaria, Kuldeep Singh Dhillon and Hardeb Singh Radhe Sherowalia had been additionally current. There are 16 MLAs within the Congress.
On the finish of the three-and-a-half-hour assembly, Tripto Rajinder Singh Bajwa mentioned the individuals unanimously licensed Channi to fulfill the Congress excessive command and search reconsideration of sure choices. “We’ve got no battle with the occasion excessive command. Nonetheless, sure choices had been taken that all of us really feel must be reviewed,” he mentioned.
Bajwa additional mentioned that Congress officers from totally different components of Punjab got here to fulfill Chani and expressed their disappointment over the newly introduced checklist. He mentioned it has been determined that Mr. Channi will take his issues on to the occasion management in Delhi and search a assessment of the appointment.
“The Congress occasion management known as me to their residence and urged me to precise the feelings and aspirations of the folks of Punjab earlier than the excessive command,” Chani wrote to X.
The Congress management known as me to their residence and urged me to current the feelings and aspirations of the folks of Punjab earlier than the excessive command. pic.twitter.com/hGI6Kihbkf
— Charanjit Singh Channi (@CHARANJITCHANNI) July 3, 2026
Though leaders declined to publicly title anybody whose appointment ought to be reconsidered, occasion officers indicated that the primary purpose for dissatisfaction centered on the choice to maintain Mr. Walling as state speaker.
Additionally current on the assembly was Sidhu Mooswara’s father Barkaur Singh, who has political ties to the Congress and is believed to be near Mr Walling.
The rally additionally included former deputy prime minister OP Soni, lending added weight to what was extensively seen as a present of power by leaders dissatisfied with the excessive command’s choices.
The absence of opposition leaders Partap Singh Bajwa, Sukhpal Singh Khaira, Palghat Singh and Randhawa, particularly, underscored that whereas resentment over the appointment is shared by a number of senior leaders, all sides is pursuing totally different methods in coping with the excessive command.
Resentment has been mounting for weeks, with hypothesis mounting that the excessive command could appoint a brand new chief minister for the Punjab Meeting in a bid to revitalize the group forward of the parliamentary elections. Each Chani and Randhawa had been thought-about sturdy candidates for the publish.
For Chani, who stays one of many tallest Dalit faces within the occasion even after turning into Punjab’s first Dalit chief minister in 2021. Speaker of Punjab Meeting Many supporters noticed his continued political relevance acknowledged after his victory from Jalandhar within the Lok Sabha elections.
Randhawa, a former deputy chief minister and an influential Jat Sikh chief from Majha, additionally enjoys sturdy help throughout the occasion and believed a change in management would assist broaden the occasion’s social and regional enchantment.
As a substitute, the Congress excessive command selected continuity over change. Though the marketing campaign tried to strike a steadiness by assigning key tasks to Chani and Randhawa, the choice to maintain Walling and Bajwa of their present positions seems to have dissatisfied leaders who had hoped for a bigger reorganization.
Assembly between Randhawa and Amit Shah
Including to the day’s political drama was Randhawa’s assembly with Amit Shah, which instantly sparked hypothesis in political circles about his future in Parliament, particularly because it coincided with rising unrest in Punjab.
Nonetheless, Randhawa rejected recommendations that the assembly had something to do together with his political future or his dissatisfaction with Congress. He mentioned he had written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi within the first week of June in regards to the deteriorating legislation and order state of affairs in delicate areas of Punjab, particularly the border areas that he represents as an MP, and requested for a gathering.
I counter that some sections of the media are giving a mischievous political slant to my assembly with the Union Dwelling Minister.
This assembly was pre-scheduled for immediately in reference to my delegation on the deteriorating legislation and order state of affairs in Punjab. pic.twitter.com/fzLZ0oULlP
— Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa (@Sukhjinder_INC) July 3, 2026
Randhawa mentioned he had expressed concern over elevated gang actions, extortion, Pakistan-backed narco-terrorism and what he described because the “political weaponization” of the Punjab Police beneath the present police chief.
On the similar time, Randhawa didn’t disguise his disappointment with the reorganization. Whereas denying rumors of becoming a member of the BJP, he admitted that the ultimate checklist was not what he anticipated after a number of conferences with Punjab leaders and observers.
Chandigarh Member of Parliament Manish Tewari He additionally wrote cryptic posts. Concerning the new ballot committee in X. “I want there was an antidote to private and organizational insecurities! As I mentioned @INCIndia has served me nicely for the previous 45 years, I’ve devoted my complete grownup life to the service of the Indian Nationwide Congress for many years. No matter occurs, it should occur…”
BJP leaders had a sensible day over the escalating infighting throughout the Congress. Union Minister Ravneet Bittu mentioned in a video message that it’s well-known that Mr. Waring is in cahoots with AAP CM Bhagwant Mann.
“The truth that Mr. Walling was not modified continues to indicate that the Congress is allied with the Aam Aadmi Celebration. Rahul Gandhi by no means cared in regards to the needs of the Punjab management…He’s executed with the Congress and doesn’t care about Punjab both,” Bittu mentioned.
(Edited by Gitanjali Das)
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