Daijiworld Media Network - New Delhi
New Delhi, Jul 3: Internal divisions within the Congress in Punjab intensified on Friday following the party's organisational overhaul ahead of the 2027 Assembly elections, with senior party leader and MP Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa meeting Union Home Minister Amit Shah amid growing unrest within the state unit.
Randhawa, however, dismissed speculation linking the meeting to the ongoing turmoil in the Punjab Congress, clarifying in a post on X that the appointment had been scheduled in advance to discuss the state's deteriorating law and order situation.
Addressing the media after meeting Shah, Randhawa said he had written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on June 4, with a copy marked to the Home Minister, highlighting serious concerns over the worsening security situation in Punjab.
He said he submitted a memorandum to the Home Minister seeking stronger action against the increasing incidents involving gangsters, particularly in Gurdaspur and other border districts, adding that the issue was discussed in detail during the meeting.
Responding to questions about former Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi convening a meeting of senior Congress leaders after the party's organisational reshuffle, Randhawa admitted that the prevailing situation within the state unit was unfortunate.
"This situation should not have arisen. Several meetings were held before the organisational revamp, but it is disappointing that many leaders still remain dissatisfied," he said.
The latest signs of factionalism come days after the Congress announced a revamped Punjab organisation while retaining Amarinder Singh Raja Warring as the state party president.
Meanwhile, Union Minister Ravneet Singh Bittu mocked the Congress leadership crisis by drawing a comparison with a famous scene from the classic film Sholay. Referring to actor Asrani's comical jailor character, Bittu said Raja Warring resembled the officer left standing alone after his entire contingent marched away.
Claiming that most of Warring's political associates had aligned themselves with former Chief Minister Channi, Bittu quipped that the Punjab Congress chief should stop resisting the inevitable and join the "Channi wagon" along with the rest of his colleagues.
The meeting convened by Channi witnessed the participation of several prominent Congress leaders, signalling the former Chief Minister's continued influence within the party.
Among those who attended were former Deputy Chief Minister O.P. Soni, former ministers Tript Rajinder Singh Bajwa, Sukhbinder Singh Sarkaria, Gurpreet Singh Kangar, Bharat Bhushan Ashu and Gurkirat Singh Kotli, besides former MP Mohammad Sadiq.
The discontent within the Punjab Congress had become evident a day earlier when three-time Lok Sabha MP Manish Tewari expressed disappointment after being excluded from the party's newly constituted organisational and election panels.
In a cryptic post on X, the former Union Minister said he wished he had "an antidote for the insecurities of individuals and institutions," while adding that the Congress had given him much over the past 45 years and that he had devoted his entire adult life to serving the party.
Ending his post with the phrase, "Que sera, sera, Whatever will be, will be," Tewari appeared to hint at his unhappiness over being sidelined.
Notably, six of the Congress' seven Lok Sabha MPs from Punjab have been assigned responsibilities related to the upcoming state Assembly elections, with Tewari being the lone exception.