Former Punjab Congress president Amarinder Singh Raja Warring met Rahul Gandhi in New Delhi on Friday, two days after stepping down amid internal party differences ahead of the 2027 Punjab Assembly elections. Warring subsequently acknowledged that former chief minister Charanjit Singh Channi’s faction had prevailed in the leadership dispute.
Speaking to reporters following the meeting, Warring said Punjab Congress affairs in-charge Sachin Pilot had wanted him to relinquish his position, although he maintained that nobody had explicitly asked him to resign.
Referring to the former chief minister, Warring remarked that Channi had won the internal leadership contest.
The Ludhiana MP resigned on September 30, ending his tenure as Punjab Congress president, which began in April 2022. His departure followed months of reported differences between his supporters and those aligned with Channi.
Warring described his meeting with Rahul Gandhi as positive, saying their discussions covered Punjab politics as well as personal and family matters.
Addressing questions about his resignation, Warring said his political experience had helped him understand the developments within the party and that he had decided to step aside when the circumstances became clear.
He also noted that the Congress leadership had been receiving internal feedback about the state unit for more than four years, suggesting that Pilot might have recently provided additional assessments.
Following Warring’s resignation, the Congress appointed former Indian hockey captain and Jalandhar Cantonment MLA Pargat Singh as the new Punjab Congress president.
Pargat Singh, who had generally been associated with the faction opposing Warring’s leadership, was selected from a field of potential successors that included former Union minister Vijay Inder Singla, former deputy chief minister Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa, Rana KP Singh and Sukhbinder Singh Sarkaria.
The leadership decision involved considerations of regional, caste and community representation, including whether to appoint a Hindu leader or retain a Jat Sikh at the head of the state unit.
Meanwhile, Channi, who belongs to the Dalit community, continues to lead the Punjab Congress campaign committee, a position he assumed in July.
The former chief minister had reportedly remained dissatisfied with Warring’s leadership despite receiving the campaign committee position. He has not publicly responded to Warring’s resignation but has recently highlighted his previous tenure as Punjab chief minister on social media.
The leadership change comes approximately six months before the 2027 Punjab Assembly elections, as the Congress prepares its campaign under a new state president while navigating longstanding internal differences.
