In Punjab, Congress looks to cash in on discontent to get its ‘nose ahead’

Months ago, All India Congress Committee (AICC) general secretary incharge for Punjab Devender Yadav, told The Indian Express that they would fight the polls “on the front foot” with their stalwarts in the ring. True to his word, the party has fielded senior leaders such as state Congress chief Amrinder Singh Raja Warring (Ludhiana), former Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi (Jalandhar), ex-Deputy Chief Minister Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa (Gurdaspur), and its panthic face Sukhpal Singh Khaira (Sangrur).

The Congress, had bagged eight of the 13 Lok Sabha seats in the 2019 polls, with AAP getting one, and the SAD-BJP combine bagging four. This time it is hoping to cash in on the anti-incumbency against the over two-year-old AAP government, which had come to power with sky-high expectations.

Congress vote shares in Punjab elections

The contest in Punjab has become more interesting considering that the AAP and Congress have joined hands in other states and are a part of the Opposition INDIA bloc while going against each other in the state.

While party leaders had been stoutly opposing an alliance from the beginning claiming they had been “hounded” and arrested during the AAP’s anti-corruption drive, Partap Singh Bajwa, Leader of Opposition, says his reasons were more pragmatic. “We are the Opposition. Had we joined hands with the AAP, the entire anti-government vote would have gone to other parties. Also, the AAP would have taken many of our leaders.”

His fears were not unfounded as AAP “poached” several Congressmen, including Raj Kumar Chhabewal and Gurpreet Singh G P, whom it has fielded from Hoshiarpur and Fatehgarh Sahib, respectively.

Pitted against AAP in all the 13 seats, Congress candidates are at pains to gloss over the 300 free units of power provided by the AAP government, a widely appreciated initiative across the state. Many people The Indian Express spoke to in villages and towns praised the zero power bills they began receiving after AAP came to power.

Additionally, the Aam Aadmi Clinics, offering a wide range of free diagnostic services and medicines free of cost, are also a big hit, especially in rural areas.

The discontent against AAP revolves largely around its “inaccessible” legislators and the continuing menace of drugs, a charge that Congress has often faced in the past. At Sehna village near Barnala, Jagsir Singh Seera, zilla pradhan of the Bharatiya Kisan Union (Dakaunda), articulates the popular sentiment and says, “Local legislators like Labh Singh Ugoke neither answer calls nor meet the locals.” At Barnala, two shopkeepers, Amarjit and Manjit Singh, complain that local MLA and minister Gurmeet Singh Meet Hayer never returned to thank the voters. In Anritsar, a group of women also mentions two missing AAP legislators.

This may be one reason why every Congress candidate is banking on accessibility and personal connection to woo voters. In Amritsar, Gurjit Singh Aujla, who rose from being a councillor to a two-time MP, asks people to vote for him if they think he is always there for them. His words resonate on the street. Pankaj Passi, an employee of AU Small Finance Bank, says he is not voting for any party but for Aujla. “He is always there for us.”

Aware of the discontent over civic issues, Congress candidates are also focusing on local concerns. In speech after speech, Aujla, who shot to national fame when he ran towards the attackers in Parliament last December, slams poor sanitation and bad roads. “There has been no election for the Amritsar municipal corporation for two years. Why are they (AAP) running scared?” he asks.

From playing in parks to praying at popular places of worship, Raja Warring and Channi, who are both fighting the “outsider” tag in Ludhiana and Jalandhar, respectively are frequenting crowded spots to touch base with as many locals as possible while raising community issues. Unlike in the past when candidates would go to Punjab voters with a single manifesto, each candidate is rolling out a separate, highly localised vision document this time.

Every seat has a different narrative. Khaira, who is pitted against the SAD (A) president and sitting Sangrur MP Simranjeet Singh Mann, often emphasises the need to free the ‘Bandi Singhs’ or Sikh political prisoners.

Congress candidates also seem to be keen on capitalising on the “unkept promises” of the AAP government, including the Rs 1,000 monthly stipend to women, as well as the general disillusionment among voters, who had set an unrealistically high bar for the AAP. “If the bar for other parties is one foot, for AAP it is three feet,” said an observer.

As Harvinder Pal Singh, a commission agent from Mohammed village in Faridkot, puts it, “There is no AAP wave this time. I am disappointed by the slow pace of lifting wheat. What used to be done in a fortnight during the Congress regime is now taking over a month. Our commission too has been reduced,” he says, pointing to the heaps of wheat-filled sacks at the Kot Ise Khan mandi.

But the “party of leaders,” as Congress is referred to in a lighter vein in the state, is marred by infighting. Warring’s candidature had reportedly angered the local ex-MLA Bharat Bhushan Ashu. However, Warring, who often posts pictures of Ashu campaigning for him, says things are different. “We are fighting for survival, we are fighting for democracy, we have sunk our differences.”

Communication professionals like Rohit Jindal from Bathinda, however, warn that the Congress could lose pro-Ram temple urban votes to the BJP.

With the polls on June 1, the 40th anniversary of Operation Bluestar, the Congress is also under attack by both the Akali Dal and BJP for the ill-fated operation and the anti-Sikh pogrom. Party insiders say the old wounds have healed. “Rahul (Gandhi) spent considerable time at the Golden Temple doing sewa last year. The Punjab voters are very bright; they don’t blame us for the sins of the past,” a leader says.

Political observers such as Ashutosh Kumar from Panjab University, Chandigarh, say the party has an upper hand by default. “The AAP is facing anti-incumbency, Akalis are still recovering, and BJP is looking at the 2027 Assembly polls. Meanwhile, the Congress has fielded established leaders who will do their best to win.”

On the ground, there are speculations about a secret understanding between the Congress and AAP on seats such as Ludhiana where AAP has fielded a low-profile sitting MLA against Congress’s Warring. PM Narendra Modi has also slammed the two, saying their contest was a sham. Both parties dismiss the allegation with AAP leaders pointing out that it had announced its candidates before the Congress, which did so in instalments.