State Cong in-charge Baghel to meet party leaders on March 1

Newly appointed Congress general secretary in-charge of Punjab affairs and former Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel will hold his first meeting with party leaders in the state on March 1.

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Setting a pitch for organisational changes in the Congress state unit, Baghel will interact with party MLAs, MP and district unit heads and elicit their views. Before the meeting at Punjab Congress Bhawan here, Baghel will pay obeisance at religious places in Amritsar. PPCC chief Amrinder Singh Raja Warring has planned a large gathering to welcome Baghel.

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His visit comes in the wake of groupism and ‘indiscipline’ in the state unit. Leaders do not rule out notices being issued in this regard in the coming days. A few days ago, Kapurthala MLA Rana Gurjeet Singh, while speaking on denial of ticket from the Anandpur Sahib seat in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls, had described the PPCC chief as a selfish leader. Warring has maintained his calm so far, but without naming Rana, he had stated that indiscipline would not be tolerated in the party.

Reconstitution of the party’s state unit has been pending since Warring took over as the PPCC chief in April 2022. Being a senior leader and hailing from the OBC community, the Congress is sending Baghel to Punjab to pull all stops to ensure that the party puts up a united face in view of the 2027 Assembly elections.