“Congress Has Only One Face In Punjab, And That Is Rahul Gandhi”: Bhupesh Baghel

Chandigarh – Congress in-charge for Punjab Bhupesh Baghel on Monday said the party has only “one face” in the state ahead of the 2027 Assembly polls — Rahul Gandhi.

Amid ongoing infighting over state leadership, Baghel posted on X in Hindi: “There is no confusion in Punjab. Just like in the Lok Sabha elections, people here are putting their faith in Rahul Gandhi for the Assembly elections too. The Congress Party has only one face in Punjab, and that is Shri Rahul Gandhi Ji.”

Baghel’s statement suggests Congress may contest the 2027 polls without announcing a CM face, and instead fight under Gandhi’s leadership. That would mark a shift from previous elections where the party projected a state leader as CM.

In 2017, Congress had named Capt. Amarinder Singh as its CM face and won decisively. Amarinder, now with BJP, had also led the government from 2002-07.

Before the 2022 polls, the party replaced him with Charanjit Singh Channi. Congress ended up winning just 18 of 117 seats.

Leadership tussle continues

The Punjab unit has been in turmoil for weeks over who should head the state unit.

On July 1, the high command said Amrinder Singh Raja Warring would continue as state president and appointed Channi as campaign committee chair.

The move reportedly upset Channi and his supporters. They skipped meeting Baghel when he arrived on July 6 for damage control.

The standoff eased on Saturday when Channi and over 80 leaders, including several MLAs, met Baghel at MLA Rana Gurjit’s residence for nearly 80 minutes. Sources said the group expressed reservations about Warring continuing as president.

Senior leader Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa, with Channi beside him, later told reporters they had conveyed workers’ sentiments to Baghel and asked for a leader who is “not compromised”. He indicated Warring was not acceptable to the Channi camp.

Baghel, however, maintained that there was “no objection” to the high command’s decision on Warring. He added that some concerns were raised and he would pass them on. Warring was not at the meeting but dropped Baghel at the airport afterward.