In place of Navjot Singh Sidhu, Congress president Sonia Gandhi named Amarinder Singh Brar (Raja Warring) as the party’s new Punjab chairman on Saturday, and former Rajya Sabha member Pratap Singh Bajwa as the new legislature party leader.
Warring was elected as an MLA from the Gidderbaha assembly constituency, while Bajwa was elected from the Qadian assembly constituency. “The Congress President has selected Amarinder Singh Brar (Raja Warring) as President of the Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee and Bharat Bhushan Ashu as Working President,” the party stated in a statement.
The announcement continued, “The Congress president has appointed Pratap Singh Bajwa as Leader and Raj Kumar Chabbewal as Deputy Leader of the Punjab Congress Legislature Party in Punjab.”
Warring succeeds Navjot Singh Sidhu, a former cricketer turned politician who had to quit after the Congress lost control in Punjab.
Sonia Gandhi has urged state Congress presidents to retire following the party’s defeat in recent elections in five states. She also restructured the Manipur and Goa operations.
