Chandigarh (Punjab) [India], July 9 (ANI): Senior Punjab Congress leaders met on Thursday and sought to project unity, saying the party would speak out against what they called an attack on democracy even as they acknowledged internal differences.
Former Chief Minister and Congress leader Charanjit Singh Channi, along with party leaders Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa, Pargat Singh, Bharat Bhushan Ashu, Gurkirat Singh Kotli and Barindermeet Singh Pahra and Congress MLA Rana Gurjeet Singh attended the meeting
After the meeting, Randhawa said the gathering sent out a message of unity within the party.
“Today, Pargat Singh has given a clear message that there may be differences in opinions, but Congress stands together,” Randhawa told reporters.
Pargat Singh, speaking after the meeting with Channi, said the party high command has been kept informed, and efforts are underway to resolve internal matters.
“The party high command is in the loop. We are talking to resolve things,” he said.
Rana Gurjeet Singh said the meeting had boosted his morale and that leaders had held a “strategic discussion” on the way forward.
“Congress leaders, including Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa, Pargat Singh, and others, met today. Congress party will not sit silently. We will raise our voice against anything that goes against democracy. The meeting today boosted my morale. We had a strategic discussion,” he told reporters.
Elaborating further, Rana said the leaders conveyed that the party would not remain passive on matters concerning democratic principles. He added that options, including approaching the court or organising a major event, were discussed.
“Charanjit Singh Channi, Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa, Pargat Singh, Bharat Bhushan Ashu, Gurkirat Kotli and Barindermeet Singh Pahra visited me together today and said that the Congress party would not sit idly by. If there is any subversion of democracy, we must raise our voices against it. That is the strategy the Congress party must adopt. They have boosted my morale, and I thanked them. We were discussing whether to knock on the court’s door or organise a major event to address the situation.”
On the current state of the party, Rana Gurjeet Singh said there was no deadlock. He also clarified that he has spoken to party secretary Suraj Thakur, but not to senior leader Bhupesh Baghel.
“I haven’t spoken to Baghel. As for Suraj Thakur, our secretary, I have spoken to him. Where is the deadlock? All is Well. No one is outside the purview of the High Command. Everything will be fine when the time comes.,” Rana said.
AICC General Secretary in-charge of Punjab, Bhupesh Baghel, on Tuesday said that he will hold meetings with Jalandhar MP and former Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi and Congress MP Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa after they skipped the key meeting.
While there are speculations of a rift within the Punjab Congress over the leadership shuffle, Bhupesh Baghel claimed that the senior leaders have appreciated the new team constituted by the high command.
The rift within the Punjab Congress over the leadership shuffle comes as the party starts preparing for the 2027 assembly elections.
All India Congress Committee (AICC) General Secretary in-charge of Punjab Bhupesh Baghel on Wednesday said the party high command’s decisions are final and cannot be changed repeatedly, as he defended the reappointment of Amarinder Singh Raja Warring as the Punjab Congress president and dismissed speculation over differences within the state unit.
Channi, along with a group of loyalists, is reportedly in Delhi to lodge their complaints over the recent leadership shuffle in the party’s state unit. This comes as the party starts preparing for the 2027 assembly elections.
Earlier today, Punjab Congress president Amarinder Singh Raja Warring maintained that Charanjit Singh Channi has not distanced himself from the party.
Warring also dismissed reports of infighting, saying he was ready to make any sacrifice for the party.
The Congress leaders’ remarks came amid speculation over differences within the Punjab Congress following the party’s organisational appointments. (ANI)
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