Cong leadership to hear out state leaders to bridge rift
The Congress top leadership has decided to give one-on-one hearing to Punjab party leaders to stem factionalism in the state unit after the Ludhiana bypoll debacle.
According to a source, a faction of state party leaders in seeking a “genuine on ground survey” to gauge the popularity of Hindu, Dalit and Jat faces. “We would press upon the high command to conduct the survey on acceptance and popularity of the leaders who can lead the state unit,” said one of the leaders.
The development follows after All-India Congress Committee (AICC) general secretary incharge for Punjab Bhupesh Baghel accepted resignations of Bharat Bhushan Ashu, Pargat Singh and Kushaldeep Dhillon from party positions in the state.
Accepting moral responsibility for the bypoll result, the leaders had tendered their resignations. A source said, beginning with Ashu, who was the party’s candidate for the bypoll, all leaders involved in the campaigning would be called for one-to-one hearing in coming days in Delhi.
The leaders expected to give their views include Rana Gurjeet Singh, Charanjit Singh Channi, Ashu and Pargat, Ashu has already said that Punjab needed a Congress that was “united in spirit, clear in direction and strong in purpose”.
“I sincerely hope the coming days bring reflection, not retribution, and that justice within the party is guided by values, not convenience,” he said. After a report on the Ludhiana bypoll submitted to the top party leadership by the Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee, Ludhiana bypoll in charge Rana Gurjeet is learnt to have submitted his own report, telling the other side of the story.
While the PPCC is learnt to have pointed out that the election management was being handled by a few select leaders while the state top leadership was kept out of it, the pressure group led by Ashu is learnt to have given specific details on efforts made by the top PPCC leadership to “derail the campaign”.
The PPCC has reportedly pointed out that after some leaders were inducted into the party without the approval of the high command, the equations within the party deteriorated, leading to the bypoll debacle. On the other hand, the leaders involved in the campaign have given details as to how leaders were asked not to campaign for the party candidate.
Ashu, in a recent post on X had questioned why “proxy leaders were used to undermine his campaign and why some viewed the election as a means to settle personal scores rather than strengthen the Congress”.
Without taking names, his comments were widely interpreted as a veiled reference to Punjab Congress president Amrinder Singh Raja Warring. The former working president of the state Congress, Ashu stressed that his resignation was an act of responsibility, not an admission of guilt.
Refuting allegations made by a rival faction in the party, Ashu denied running a parallel campaign or engaging in factionalism. “Those who worked closely with me know the sincerity of my effort. Yes, there was a breakdown in coordination and I accept my share of responsibility for not being able to bridge that divide, despite trying,” he said.
Calling for introspection, Ashu said the focus must shift to understanding why the voter disengaged, instead of internal blame games.
Punjab