The Congress party in Punjab continues to face internal differences with around seven months left before the state assembly elections are expected to be announced and public remarks by senior party leaders and reports of meetings involving the party high command have highlighted the ongoing factionalism within the state unit.
Ferozepur MP Sher Singh Ghubaya has openly questioned the leadership of Punjab Congress president Amarinder Singh Raja Warring and said Warring was not performing his responsibilities effectively and should resign from his post. He also claimed that people in Punjab were unhappy with the current leadership of the state Congress.
Ghubaya further said that Warring's earlier statement about giving election tickets to new faces had upset many party workers and according to him, the announcement created resentment among existing leaders and workers. He also said that no individual is bigger than the party and alleged that Warring had not been aggressive enough in raising issues against the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government in Punjab.
However, Congress leader Kuldeep Singh Vaid strongly disagreed with Ghubaya's remarks and said that demanding the resignation of the state party president amounted to indiscipline. He instead suggested that Ghubaya should resign from his own position if he was unhappy with the party leadership.
Amid the growing differences, sources within the Congress said a closed-door meeting was held in Delhi on July 29 and according to the sources, the meeting was attended by Punjab Congress president Raja Warring, former Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi and Congress MP Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa.
According to party sources, Raja Warring told those present during the meeting that he was willing to resign if all leaders were ready to go together and meet the party high command and sources said Channi responded that his concern was not about any individual leader but about public opinion in Punjab and the future of the Congress party.
During the meeting, Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa reportedly clarified that he was not seeking any post within the party and acording to sources, Randhawa said his only objective was to ensure that the Congress forms the government in Punjab after the 2027 Assembly elections.
Warring denies resigning
Later, Raja Warring publicly denied reports claiming that he had resigned or was planning to resign and dismissed the reports as false and said the party had already prepared a district-wise programme under the "Har Booth Congress Mazboot" campaign.
Warring also alleged that the AAP's IT cell was spreading false reports to create confusion within the Congress. He appealed to the media to publish news based on official information and confirmed schedules instead of relying on unnamed sources.
