Ahead of the Punjab Assembly elections expected in early 2027, the Congress has unveiled a new organisational structure that has triggered a fresh political debate. While the party has retained Amarinder Singh Raja Warring as President of the Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee (PPCC) and Partap Singh Bajwa as Leader of the Congress Legislature Party (Leader of Opposition), it has not named a Chief Ministerial (CM) face.
Instead, the Congress high command has opted for a collective leadership model by assigning key election responsibilities to almost every senior leader in the state, a move that many political observers see as an attempt to strengthen organisational unity before the elections.
The appointments, announced by AICC General Secretary K.C. Venugopal, include Charanjit Singh Channi as Chairman of the Campaign Committee, Vijay Inder Singla as Chairman of the Election Management and Coordination Committee, Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa as Chairman of the Core Committee, and Dr. Amar Singh as Chairman of the Manifesto Committee. The party has also appointed Sukhwinder Singh Danny, Raj Kumar Verka, and Sangat Singh Gilzian as Working Presidents of the Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee.
The Campaign Committee will have Sukhpal Singh Khaira, Rana Gurjeet Singh, and Dr. Dharamvira Gandhi as Co-Chairpersons. The Election Management and Coordination Committee will include O.P. Soni, Razia Sultana, Kuljit Singh Nagra, Angad Singh Saini, and Bharat Bhushan Ashu as Co-Chairpersons. The Manifesto Committee will have Gurjeet Singh Aujla, Pargat Singh, Hardial Singh Kamboj, and Sukhbinder Singh Sarkaria as Co-Chairpersons, completing the organisational structure announced by the AICC for the 2027 Punjab Assembly election preparations.
While the Congress has finalised its organisational structure, it has deliberately avoided announcing a Chief Ministerial candidate for Punjab. This has fuelled political discussions because several senior leaders are considered potential contenders for the state’s top post.
For weeks, there had been intense speculation over a possible leadership change in the Punjab Congress. Multiple meetings were held in New Delhi involving Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi, AICC General Secretary K.C. Venugopal, Punjab in-charge Bhupesh Baghel, and senior Punjab leaders to review the party’s organisational strategy.
Instead of replacing either the state president or the Leader of Opposition, the Congress retained both Raja Warring and Bajwa while assigning major responsibilities to Channi, Randhawa, Singla, Dr. Amar Singh and several other senior leaders.
Political observers say this reflects the party’s effort to project unity and organisational stability before the elections.
Punjab Congress has witnessed internal differences among senior leaders over the years, and several prominent leaders are regarded as aspirants for the Chief Minister’s post. Against this backdrop, political observers believe the high command has deliberately avoided projecting one leader over another at this stage. Instead, it has distributed key organisational responsibilities across different leaders to minimise factionalism and keep every major group engaged in the election campaign.
The Congress has adopted different strategies in previous Assembly elections. In 2017, the party projected Captain Amarinder Singh as its principal leader before the election, and after the Congress secured victory, he became Chief Minister. In 2022, the party officially declared Charanjit Singh Channi as its Chief Ministerial face before the Assembly elections. However, the Congress suffered a major defeat, while the Aam Aadmi Party formed the government with a decisive mandate.
This time, although Channi has been appointed Chairman of the Campaign Committee, the Congress has not projected him—or any other leader—as its Chief Ministerial face.
Unlike the Congress, the ruling Aam Aadmi Party has already indicated that Bhagwant Mann will lead the party into the 2027 Punjab Assembly elections as its Chief Ministerial face.
For now, the Congress leadership has focused on strengthening the organisation rather than naming a Chief Ministerial candidate. Political observers believe the party may take a final decision on its CM face closer to the election campaign or after the Assembly election schedule is announced. Although the Congress has made no official statement on the issue, the current strategy suggests that organisational unity has been given priority over an early leadership announcement.
As Punjab moves towards the 2027 Assembly elections, the Congress has answered who will lead its organisation and election campaign—but one crucial political question still remains unanswered: Who will be the party’s Chief Ministerial face?