The jibe drew a sharp response from Warring, who retaliated, saying he was only following his leader Rahul Gandhi, who has advocated the principle.
The factional feud in the Punjab Congress intensified on Saturday, with senior leader and Gurdaspur MP Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa taking a swipe at state party chief Amarinder Singh Raja Warring’s “one family, one ticket” formula for the 2027 assembly elections.
A group of leaders, led by Channi, opposed the move and sought Warring’s removal. The infighting came to the fore when the Congress leadership on July 1 announced its decision to retain Warring as the state unit chief and appoint Channi as the chairperson of its campaign committee. Channi’s supporters have also been seeking that he be projected as the chief ministerial face for the 2027 assembly polls.
The high command has since rallied behind Warring. Punjab Congress affairs in-charge Bhupesh Baghel has also repeatedly reiterated that the party will not project any chief ministerial face in Punjab polls. “We have failed to corner the incumbent Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government on important issues. The issue has intensified the ongoing political tussle between Punjab Congress chief Amrinder Singh Raja Warring and Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa. Bittu has backed senior Congress leader Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa’s argument that electoral ability, rather than family ties, should determine ticket distribution.
Warring, in a speech in Ferozepur during the party’s grassroots outreach ‘Har Booth, Congress Mazboot’ campaign on August 4, had said that under his leadership the state unit would follow the principle of “one family, one ticket and 70% of tickets would go to youth, a move that had reportedly upset several senior leaders in the state unit. The event, held to pay tributes to Karnail Singh Issru, who was killed in Goa on August 15, 1955, was organised without the involvement of the Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee (PPCC). During the party’s ‘Har Booth, Congress Mazboot’ campaign from July 31 to August 8, there was an open display of infighting with Channi’s supporters raising slogans in his favour and verbal clashes between supporters of Channi and Warring at several meetings.
“If people from a family are capable of winning, then not just two, even four tickets can be given,” Randhawa said in the presence of Jalandhar MP and former chief minister Charanjit Singh Channi. A senior party leader said the political tussle over the past three months has started to affect the party’s poll preparations. The rallies and programmes that should have been held against the AAP government are now being used to target one another,” the leader said, requesting anonymity. Earlier reporting noted: “One Family One Ticket” Row Grows As BJP’s Ravneet Bittu Targets Congress “One Family One Ticket” Row Grows As BJP’s Ravneet Bittu Targets Congress “One Family One Ticket” Row Grows As BJP’s Ravneet Bittu Targets Congress Earlier reporting noted: The issue has intensified the ongoing political tussle between Punjab Congress chief Amrinder Singh Raja Warring and Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa. Earlier reporting noted: The Congress’s “One family, one ticket” policy has come under fresh attack, with BJP leader and former Union Minister Ravneet Bittu taking sides.
