Punjab Congress Rift Deepens as Bhupesh Baghel Faces Protests During State Tour

Chandigarh: The biggest challenge facing the Congress, which is preparing for the Punjab Assembly elections, is not the opposition but the increasing factionalism within the party. To bring the organisation into election mode, the Congress high command has fielded senior leader and Punjab in-charge Bhupesh Baghel, but during his visit itself, the internal tussle of the party came to the fore. Slogans were raised against Punjab Congress President Amarinder Singh Raja Warring in the organisational meetings held in Patiala and Sangrur. In Sangrur, the protest increased so much that the protesters also raised slogans against Bhupesh Baghel and workers of both the groups came face to face.

Has Baghel's solidarity campaign faded?

Bhupesh Baghel is on a ten-day tour of Punjab from July 31. He is assessing the preparedness of the organisation through meetings at the district and block level under the 'Har Booth Congress Strong' campaign. The intention of the high command was to strengthen coordination between workers and leaders before the elections, but protests started in their programmes themselves. This clearly indicated that the ongoing dissatisfaction within the party has not ended yet.

Why is the Channi camp angry?

The differences in the Congress intensified when the party recently formed new election management committees. Former Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi and his supporters are continuously demanding changes in the organisation and replacement of State President Amarinder Singh Raja Warring. Several rounds of talks have been held with the Congress leadership in Delhi on this issue, but no solution has been found so far. Channi supporters are firm on their stand and its effect is clearly visible in the party programmes.

Are organisational meetings also being boycotted?

According to sources, many senior party leaders and Channi supporters maintained distance from the meetings held at the district level. At the same time, wherever meetings were held, protests and sloganeering increased the problems of leadership. Political experts believe that such public anger before the elections raises questions on the organisational structure of the party and can also affect the morale of the workers.

What are the options before the high command?

After the latest developments, it is believed that the complete report from Punjab will reach the Congress high command. Two options are being considered before the party leadership. First, strict action should be taken against leaders involved in persistent indiscipline and factionalism. Second, efforts should be made to bring dissatisfied leaders together by making changes in the state leadership. However, till now there has been no indication of any major decision from the Congress leadership.

Will the dispute be resolved before the elections?

Assembly elections in Punjab are getting closer and at such a time, organisational unity has become the biggest challenge for the Congress. Bhupesh Baghel has already made it clear that the decisions of the party leadership cannot be changed again and again. But the current situation shows that if factionalism is not controlled soon, it may affect both the election preparations and the performance of the party.