PCC appointments: Eye on polls, Congress infuses young blood
Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, July 19
By infusing young blood into the Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee, party leader Rahul Gandhi has sent out a clear message that the party will go into the 2022 Assembly elections with a mix of experience and freshness. The other appointments in the state party units will be around the same thinking.
Working presidents — The chosen four
Kuljit Singh Nagra
Age: 55
Education: Postgraduate
Community: Jat Sikh
Region: Fatehgarh Sahib (Malwa)
Considered close to Rahul Gandhi, Nagra is known for staying in touch with people of his constituency. He joined the party after years of heading the Panjab University Students Union. Expressing anguish over the passage of farm Bills in Lok Sabha, Nagra in September last year quit as legislator. Nagra had tweeted: “Deeply saddened by the passage of farm Bills by the BJP-Akali govt. I hereby tender my resignation as the MLA of Fatehgarh Sahib in support of the farmers’ cause.”
Sukhwinder Singh danny
Age: 43
Education: MBA
Community: SC
Region: Jandiala Guru (Majha)
Popularly known as ‘Danny’, he grabbed Rahul Gandhi’s attention with his ability to convince people through simple facts during an address at a Youth Congress event in 2008. He served as vice-president of the Youth Congress from 2005 to 2014. His proximity to Rahul got him the ticket in the 2009 LS poll, which he contested unsuccessfully. He managed election of his father, former Cabinet minister Sardool Singh Bandala, who represented Jandiala Guru seat twice. He is known for easy accessibility to his people.
Pawan Goel
Age: 59
Education: LLB
Community: Hindu (Baniya)
Region: Jaito, Faridkot (Malwa)
Son of former Punjab Food and Supplies Minister Bhagwan Dass, Goel is known for his soft-spoken and calm demeanour. He was earlier president of the district Congress and is currently the Chairman, District Planning Board. He has four siblings — two brothers and two sisters. After the assassination of his father by militants in 1987, Goel had taken the reins of his father’s political lineage. The leader enjoys a clean reputation.
Sangat Singh Gilzian
Age: 67
Education: Class VIII
Community: Lubana (BC)
Region: Urmar (Doaba)
Having got elected to the Punjab Vidhan Sabha for three consecutive terms, Gilzian had remained upset till the recent past for being ignored by the party. He had served as the Director, Punjab Land Use and Waste Board, and remained a member of the Vidhan Sabha committee working for the betterment of the downtrodden. He started his career as the sarpanch of his native Gilzian village. He is an agriculturist and a commission agent by profession.
With four new working presidents — at least two (Kuljit Nagra and Sukhwinder Danny) from Rahul’s young brigade — party’s keenness on slowly tweaking the hold of the old guard is evident.
Party leaders privy to the discussions ahead of the recast of the state unit suggest the experiment of infusing young blood or first-timers will be replicated in the Assembly elections. The recently held Assembly elections in West Bengal saw first-timers yielding positive results for Mamata Banerjee’s TMC.
At the same time, caste and regional balance has been maintained in appointing the four presidents.
Minister Charanjit Singh Channi said the party high command was adopting the model of social engineering while adding freshness to the political arena in the state politics.
With political strategist Prashant Kishor in tow, especially amid the upheaval in the Punjab Congress, the next Assembly election could see at least 25 per cent new faces. This may sound the end of political journey for many veterans in the state party unit.
Sources said given the anti-incumbency against the government and surveys indicating a dip in the popularity chart of the Chief Minister, the political strategist is learnt to have categorically told the party high command there was an urgent need to infuse freshness in the government as well as the state party unit.
