With induction in CWC, Congress sends message Charanjit Channi still its best bet in Punjab

Channi’s inclusion in the CWC assumes significance ahead of the Lok Sabha elections next year. In the words of a senior Punjab Congress leader, Channi’s selection suggests the high command continues to consider him the best bet for Punjab, something that had elevated Channi up the ranks in September 2021, when he was chosen as Punjab chief minister.

“His selection also belies the notion of many that his graph had fallen in the eyes of the top leaders at the Centre, and reinforces his standing before the party high command,” said a senior Punjab Congress leader.

Channi’s elevation to the CM’s post was largely attributed to him being a prominent Dalit face in the state, around a third of the population of which is Dalit. Subsequent to his selection as the Punjab CM, to replace the incumbent CM Captain Amarinder Singh, Channi was also announced as the chief ministerial face of the party for the February 2022 Assembly polls in the state.

Leading a high-decibel campaign for the 2022 state elections, he was photographed milking a goat, stopping his cavalcade to talk to ordinary people, breaking into an impromptu bhangra and playing a game of football, apart from making populist announcements such as reducing electricity rates, slashing VAT on fuel and decreasing rates of sand and gravel for construction.

In the elections, Channi was fielded from his pocket borough of Chamkaur Sahib and Bhadaur. He lost both seats. The party, too, fared poorly, ending up with a tally of 18, down from 77 in 2017.

Soon after the defeat, Channi headed to the US and Canada, where he spent around seven months, reportedly working on his PhD in Political Science, which he received in May this year.

Returning from his foreign tour in December, Channi had gone straight to meet top party leaders iincluding Kharge, Sonia, Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi. While on his return he did not get any traction from the Punjab Congress leadership, he was prominently visible in the Punjab leg of Rahul’s Bharat Jodo Yatra in January this year.

His induction into the CWC comes at a time when the Congress and Aam Aadmi Party have come together at the national level for the INDIA alliance for the 2024 Lok Sabha polls, even though the Punjab Congress leadership is strongly opposed to any alliance with the AAP in Punjab.

Meanwhile, Channi is facing a Vigilance Bureau probe for alleged disproportionate assets. The Vigilance is also probing alleged anomalies in the leasing out of land belonging to the Punjab Tourism department in Goa during Channi’s CM tenure. He has been questioned by the Vigilance in both cases. Channi’s selection in the CWC is set to give him a boost in the midst of the allegations, which he has denied as false.

In a tweet, Channi Sunday posted, “Grateful to my party high command for honouring me with the membership of its apex body i.e. CWC.”