New Delhi, July 3 (IANS) Reacting to reports that senior Congress leader Manish Tewari was allegedly sidelined during the appointment of new working presidents and election committee chiefs for the Punjab Congress unit, the BJP on Friday said the development was ‘nothing new.’
Speaking to IANS, BJP MP Praveen Khandelwal said, “This is nothing new. There is infighting and internal conflict in the Congress party. Whether it is Punjab, Delhi, or any other state, Rahul Gandhi’s leadership has proven to be a complete failure. What has happened to Manish Tewari in Punjab is happening to Congress leaders across the country. That is why the Congress party is heading towards political decline.”
BJP Rajya Sabha MP Tarun Chugh also took a swipe at the Congress, saying, “The Congress party is like an expired injection, neither using it nor discarding it benefits anyone. Today, whether in Punjab or elsewhere, there is a struggle between the ‘Mahaparikramavadis’ and the ‘Parikramavadis’ because the ‘Parakramavadis’ have already left the party.”
He further said that dynastic politics, arrogance, and dictatorship had reached their peak in the Congress.
“The party is now functioning in an era of sycophancy. Former Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi himself has openly stated that members of the Scheduled Caste community are being sidelined, Dalit leaders are being ignored, and appointments are being made on the basis of caste. The people of Punjab are witnessing the true face of the Congress,” Chugh said.
BJP National Spokesperson Guru Prakash also criticised the Congress, saying the party lacked internal democracy.
“There is no internal democracy in the Congress party. Whatever Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, and Priyanka Gandhi decide becomes the party’s final decision. I find it difficult to believe that any independent-minded leader can continue to remain in the Congress under such circumstances,” he said.
Responding to the reports, Congress MP Sukhdeo Bhagat rejected the claims that Tewari had been ignored.
“Manish Tewari is one of the Congress party’s most senior, experienced, and respected leaders. He has held several important organisational responsibilities, including in the NSUI and the Youth Congress, and has also served as a Union Minister. I want to make it clear that it is not true that he has been sidelined,” Bhagat said.
Meanwhile, in a seeming “dissent” with the organisational and election-related roles in the party’s Punjab revamp, three-time Congress Member of Parliament Manish Tewari on Thursday said he was left in the cold as the party appointed new working presidents and poll panels for Punjab.
“Wish I had an antidote for the insecurities of individuals and institutions! Having said that @INCIndia has given me enough over the past 45 years and I have also devoted my entire adult life in the service of the Indian National Congress over the decades,” the former Union Minister of Information and Broadcasting wrote on X in a cryptic post after being sidelined.
“Que sera, sera, Whatever will be, will be…” he added.
Out of the seven Congress MPs from Punjab, six have been assigned election-related roles for the Punjab polls.
Tiwari, who has changed his constituency in each Lok Sabha election, has been kept out of the list. He has previously represented Punjab’s Anandpur Sahib and Ludhiana parliamentary constituencies. This time, he is representing Chandigarh, the joint capital of Punjab and Haryana.
Less than 24 hours after the All India Congress Committee (AICC) announced the Punjab Congress poll panels and organisational reshuffle for the 2027 elections, his reaction came.
A Press statement by AICC General Secretary K.C. Venugopal on Wednesday said Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge approved the appointments with immediate effect.
Charanjit Singh Channi, who was a strong contender for the PPCC chief’s post, was appointed Chairperson of the Campaign Committee, while Sukhpal Singh Khaira will serve as a co-chairperson.
Vijay Inder Singla was named Chairperson of the Election Management and Coordination Committee, Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa will head the Core Committee, and Amar Singh will lead the Manifesto Committee.
Amarinder Singh Raja Warring will continue as Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee President, while Pratap Singh Bajwa will remain as Leader of the Congress Legislature Party.
The party also appointed Sukhwinder Singh Danny, Raj Kumar Verka and Sangat Singh Gilzian as Working Presidents for the Punjab unit.
–IANS
jk/rad
