Close X
Thursday, October 31, 2024
ADVT 
National

Captain Amarinder Singh Back As Congress Chief In Punjab, Partap Singh Bajwa Quits

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 27 Nov, 2015 10:10 AM
    With the 2017 Punjab assembly polls in mind, Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Friday appointed former chief minister Amarinder Singh as the state party chief, a move intended to give a fresh impetus to the beleaguered and faction-ridden unit.
     
    "Consequent upon the resignation of Partap Singh Bajwa from the presidentship of the Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee, Sonia Gandhi has appointed Amarinder Singh president with immediate effect," a party press release said here.
     
     
    The Congress also announced the re-appointment of senior state party leader Sunil Jakhar as the legislature party leader in the state assembly. Legislator Lal Singh was appointed senior vice-president.
     
    Both Bajwa and Jakhar had submitted their resignations on Thursday. Their resignations came days after party vice president Rahul Gandhi visited Punjab amid factionalism in the state unit.
     
    The Congress also announced former union minister Ambika Soni as chairperson of the campaign committee for the assembly polls.
     
     
    Congress' Nabha legislator Sadhu Singh Dharamsot will be its vice chairman and Ravneet Singh Bittu, the MP from Ludhiana, its convener.
     
    "Further appointments will be made shortly," the release added.
     
    Amarinder Singh, the Lok Sabha member from Amritsar, is at present the Congress deputy leader in the Lok Sabha.
     
    He had resigned as the Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee president after the Congress was defeated in the 2012 Punjab assembly elections.
     
     
    Reacting to the appointment, Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal on Friday said the ruling Shiromani Akal Dal (SAD) was "least bothered about Amarinder Singh or any other person taking over the command of the Congress".
     
    He told the media in Khadoor Sahib that the leadership change was an "internal matter of the Congress".
     
    "For us, all (state) Congress presidents are alike, so we are least concerned about it," Badal quipped, adding that Amarinder had been the Punjab Congress chief twice earlier and the Punjab chief minister once when the Congress lost the assembly polls. 

    MORE National ARTICLES

    Century-Old Bottle Found In Halifax Harbour May Contain Drinkable Beer

    Century-Old Bottle Found In Halifax Harbour May Contain Drinkable Beer
    An amateur scuba diver has recovered a bottle from the bottom of Halifax harbour that could contain beer that is more than a century old.

    Century-Old Bottle Found In Halifax Harbour May Contain Drinkable Beer

    Films You Don’t Want to Miss at VISAFF

    Films You Don’t Want to Miss at VISAFF
    This year’s theme: Bollywood & Beyond, celebrates stories that engage, educate, and inspire audiences by promoting free expression, cross-cultural interactions, and understanding. 

    Films You Don’t Want to Miss at VISAFF

    RCMP Seek 2 Men Who Allegedly Behaved Suspiciously Near Rogers Centre In August

    RCMP Seek 2 Men Who Allegedly Behaved Suspiciously Near Rogers Centre In August
    Supt. Lise Crouch says a passerby told private security about seeing the men on the John Street Bridge near the stadium in the afternoon of Aug. 31.

    RCMP Seek 2 Men Who Allegedly Behaved Suspiciously Near Rogers Centre In August

    Former Tory Cabinet Minister James Moore Named Chancellor At B.C. University

    Former Tory Cabinet Minister James Moore Named Chancellor At B.C. University
    Moore becomes the sixth chancellor at UNBC and will be sworn in during the convocation ceremony in Prince George next May.

    Former Tory Cabinet Minister James Moore Named Chancellor At B.C. University

    Alberta Politicians Laugh Through Tears Remembering Stories Of Manmeet Bhullar

    Alberta politicians laughed through their tears Wednesday as Progressive Conservative leader Ric McIver recounted stories about his colleague Manmeet Bhullar

    Alberta Politicians Laugh Through Tears Remembering Stories Of Manmeet Bhullar

    Aboriginals Far More Likely To Die Violently Than Other Canadians

    Aboriginals Far More Likely To Die Violently Than Other Canadians
    Overall, aboriginals accounted for 23 per cent of all homicide victims last year, even though they made up only five per cent of the population.

    Aboriginals Far More Likely To Die Violently Than Other Canadians