Baghel downplays rift as Channi skips key Punjab Congress meeting

AICC General Secretary Bhupesh Baghel downplayed a speculated rift in the Punjab Congress after ex-CM Charanjit Singh Channi skipped a key meeting. While Baghel and state chief Raja Warring insisted 'all is well,' Channi is reportedly in Delhi.

All India Congress Committee (AICC) General Secretary Bhupesh Baghel on Tuesday downplayed the speculated rift within the Punjab unit after former CM Charanjit Singh Channi skipped the key party meeting. Speaking to reporters in Chandigarh, Punjab Congress in-charge Baghel maintained, "There is no resentment among anyone."

Bhupesh Baghel held a key meeting with state Congress leaders, but along with Channi, Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa also skipped it. 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.

Leaders Maintain United Front

Punjab Congress chief Amarinder Raja Warring said that state leaders held a one-on-one meeting with Baghel and "all is well" in the party. "The leaders are having one-to-one meetings with AICC General Secretary In-Charge of Punjab, Bhupesh Baghel. All is well in the Congress party," Raja Warring said. Following the meeting, Raja Warring also tried to play down the absence of the leaders, claiming that both Channi and Randhawa had informed the Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee (PPCC) meeting's chairman that they were out of town and would be available after a couple of days.

Discipline Issues Flagged

Senior Congress leader and former MP Shamsher Singh Dullo, however, said that some "uncultured people have entered" the Punjab Congress and Baghel was in the state to "instil discipline."

Congress Eyes 2027 Comeback

Earlier today, Baghel pitched Congress as "the only option" for the people in the 2027 Punjab Assembly elections, claiming growing public disenchantment with the ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP). Addressing a meeting of District Congress Committee (DCC) presidents from across Punjab, Baghel said the party had entered election mode and was fully prepared for the political battle ahead.

In the 2022 elections, AAP recorded a sweeping victory, winning 92 of the 117 seats and restricting Congress to 18. (ANI)

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