Chandigarh: Lok Sabha leader of opposition Rahul Gandhi on Sunday held one-on-one meetings with five top Punjab Congress functionaries in what party leaders described as the final round of consultations before the party finalises its strategy for the 2027 assembly elections.The meetings in Delhi came a day after Rahul discussed the political situation in Punjab with Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and All India Congress Committee (AICC) in-charge for Punjab affairs Bhupesh Baghel. The discussions centred on a report prepared by three observers appointed by the AICC to assess the situation in the state.Rahul met Punjab Congress chief Amrinder Singh Raja Warring, leader of opposition in the Punjab assembly Partap Singh Bajwa, Jalandhar MP and former chief minister Charanjit Singh Channi, Gurdaspur MP and former deputy chief minister Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa, and former MP Vijay Inder Singla.Speaking to reporters in Delhi, Warring said the discussions focused on issues to be raised in Punjab and on ensuring a united fight in the 2027 polls. “We will root out AAP from Punjab. It will meet the same fate as it did in Delhi,” he said.Warring dismissed speculation about a leadership change in the Punjab Congress as “media creation”, saying the decision rested with the party high command. “Rahul ji and Kharge sahib will do whatever they feel is right for the Congress party,” he said.Bajwa said all leaders would abide by the party’s decision. “Whatever position is given to us, or even if none is given to us, we will stand by Rahul ji and the Congress,” he said.Bajwa further said, “We are committed soldiers of the Congress. Our families have sacrificed for the interests of Punjab, for the unity and integrity of this nation. My late father was a former minister. He sacrificed himself and we did it because we are true soldiers of the Congress. We are wedded to the ideology of the Congress. So, I have told my leader Rahul Gandhiji that whatever your suggestion is, whatever your direction is, as committed soldiers we will ensure a Congress victory in Punjab.“On June 11, Kharge appointed three observers — AICC treasurer and Congress Working Committee member Ajay Maken, Karauli-Dholpur MP Bhajan Lal Jatav and AICC in-charge for Telangana Meenakshi Natarajan — to assess and submit a report on the political situation in Punjab.Before submitting the report to the party high command on Saturday, the observers held one-on-one meetings in Delhi with sitting and former MPs, MLAs, district presidents and other office-bearers on issues including a possible organisational overhaul, leadership changes, party unity and strategy for the 2027 Punjab elections.
