A fresh round of infighting has broken out inside the Punjab Congress ahead of the 2027 assembly elections, with sitting MP Manish Tiwari venting his frustration on X after being left out of the party's newly announced organisational lineup.
Manish Tiwari's pointed post on X
Manish Tiwari, who has previously served as a minister in the Manmohan Singh government, posted a couplet on X that read, "Hai bada koi avgun usme, jise koi hunar aave" (there must be some big flaw in someone who has any talent). He added that he wished he had a cure for the insecurity of certain individuals and institutions. Tiwari also wrote that over the past 45 years the Congress has given him a great deal, but that he too had devoted his entire life, including his youth, to serving the party. He ended the post by saying that whatever has to happen now, will happen.
What triggered the outburst
The post came after the Congress announced a set of key organisational appointments on Wednesday for the Punjab assembly elections due in 2027. Chairpersons and co-chairpersons were named for several election related committees, but Manish Tiwari was not given any organisational role in the exercise, and it is this omission that appears to have prompted his public display of displeasure.
A three-time Chandigarh MP
Manish Tiwari is counted among the Congress's senior leaders in Punjab. He has been elected to the Lok Sabha three times from Chandigarh and currently represents the same seat. Before that, in 2019, he won from Anandpur Sahib in Punjab, and he has also previously represented Ludhiana in Parliament. Despite this long political track record, his absence from the new team is being seen as a significant sign of discontent within the state unit.
Who got which post
As part of the reshuffle, Amarinder Singh Raja Warring has been retained as Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee president, while Partap Singh Bajwa continues as Leader of the Opposition. Several other positions have gone to different leaders.
- Former chief minister Charanjit Singh Channi has been made chairman of the election campaign committee.
- Sukhwinder Singh Danny, Raj Kumar Verka and Sangat Singh have been given charge as working presidents.
- Vijay Inder Singla has been appointed chairman of the election management committee.
- Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa will head the core committee.
- Amar Singh has been handed charge of the manifesto committee.
Amar Singh: the high command decides
Asked about Manish Tiwari's unhappiness, Amar Singh acknowledged that Tiwari is a senior Punjab Congress leader, but said that it is the party's high command that decides who gets which responsibility.
