Chandigarh / Patiala All-India Congress Committee (AICC) secretary in charge of Punjab affairs Harish Chaudhary said the change of guard in Punjab linked to the ballot was not the result of “Antarkalah” (internal feuds). ) but anti-armanthan (brainstorming) by the Congress party.

Chaudhary added that the decision to replace the former chief minister, Captain Amarinder Singh, came after much deliberation after comments from lawmakers, workers and various circles. The party wanted to make the change long before it happened, but could not cope with the situation created by the Covid-19 pandemic, he said on Saturday evening during an interaction with reporters, calling it a “thoughtful decision”.

Capt Amarinder Singh was forced to resign by the congressional leadership on September 18, following a protracted struggle with Punjabi congressman Navjot Singh Sidhu, four ministers and several party deputies, fearing the anti-ownership resulting from his style of operation does not hurt. the party’s chances in state assembly polls in 2022. Charanjit Singh Channi, who was among the rebel ministers, was chosen as the Punjab’s first scheduled caste CM.

Chaudhary added that the biggest challenge facing Congress and the new state government (led by Channi) was the lack of time. “We only have 90 days. There will only be a few days for governance before the elections, ”he said. He also spoke about internal party democracy, asserting that everyone has the right to express themselves. “It is up to the organizational setup to decide how far such opinions can be presented and how far we can go. ”

Rajasthan’s Revenue Minister was made responsible for Punjab affairs on October 22, replacing former Uttarakhand chief minister Harish Rawat. He had previously worked as co-head of party affairs in the state in the run-up to the 2017 election, in which Congress won a nearly two-thirds majority.

MEET THE PARTY AGENTS IN THE CAPT CITADEL

Chaudhary also met with party workers at Patiala, the citadel of Captain Amarinder, on Monday to prepare the cadres for the assembly elections. the wife of the captain and the deputy Preneet Kaur; Mayor Sanjiv Bittu, PRTC President KK Sharma; the chairman of the Gau Sewa commission, Sachin Sharma; District Congress President KK Malhotra did not attend the meeting. Most of the party leaders, deputies and other senior officials attended the meeting.

In his speech, Chaudhary called on workers to prepare for the elections. He said that with the reduction in electricity and fuel tariffs, the common man in Punjab received direct relief. “Although the decision on the captain was delayed, we pulled him out because he failed to play the CM role. Now Channi is behaving well, ”Chaudhary added.

Responding to questions from the media about Preneet’s absence, Chaudhary said, “Executives and personalities have met me in Chandigarh, I have come here to meet workers.” Pressed for an answer, “the party will decide who will oppose it,” he added.

On the replacement of the mayor of Patiala and other followers of Capt Amarinder in the royal city, Chaudhary declined to comment.

Launching a verbal attack on the captain, Mandi’s board chairman Lal Singh said, “I can assure every worker that the captain will not be able to win a single seat. Its only program is to defeat Congress and we must work to defeat it. MP Madan Lal Jalalpur said Amarinder worked for officers and not for congressional workers.