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Chandigarh, July 10
A fresh attempt to ease tensions within the Punjab Congress is set to unfold on Saturday with senior leaders considered close to former chief minister Charanjit Singh Channi scheduled to meet the party Punjab affairs in-charge, Bhupesh Baghel, amid lingering differences over the state leadership.
The meeting comes just days after Baghel firmly ruled out any change in the party’s leadership in Punjab, signalling that the Congress high command intends to move forward with its existing organisational structure ahead of the 2027 Assembly elections.
Punjab Congress president Amrinder Singh Raja Warring confirmed that Baghel will meet the leaders individually. Party sources said Channi, senior leader Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa and MLA Rana Gurjit Singh are expected to be among those attending the discussions.
The meeting is being seen as an effort to bridge internal differences that surfaced after the Congress retained Warring as the Punjab unit president earlier this month while appointing Channi as chairman of the party’s campaign committee.
Speaking to reporters, Warring dismissed suggestions of a widening rift within the party. “In a day or two, you will see us all together,” he said insisting he harboured no resentment towards any leader and that the Congress remained united.
Rejecting speculation that some leaders were unwilling to accept his leadership, Warring challenged critics to identify any senior leader who had publicly opposed his appointment.
The political buzz intensified earlier this week after several leaders loyal to Channi delayed meeting Baghel during his Punjab visit. However, they later agreed to hold discussions and present their views before the party leadership.
Baghel, the former Chhattisgarh chief minister, has been holding a series of meetings with Congress legislators and office-bearers during his extended visit to Punjab as part of preparations for the Assembly elections due early next year.
Senior Congress leader Supriya Shrinate also played down reports of factionalism, saying differences of opinion are natural in a democratic party.
“Politics is another name for ambition. There are differences, but ultimately we come together,” she said, expressing confidence that the Congress would return to power in Punjab.
Shrinate argued that what many describe as factionalism actually reflects the presence of multiple experienced leaders within the party. Unlike parties driven by a single leader, she said, the Congress encourages debate and internal discussion before arriving at collective decisions.
Baghel had earlier reiterated that the Congress leadership’s decision to retain Warring as state president would not be revisited, stressing that organisational decisions made by the high command are final.
Despite the leadership debate, senior leaders including Channi’s supporters, have maintained that the party’s primary objective is to unite and prepare for the 2027 Assembly elections where the Congress hopes to regain power in Punjab.
