New Delhi: Former chief minister Amarinder Singh was appointed as the new Punjab PCC chief and senior leader Ambika Soni made head of the Campaign Committee in a major reshuffle of the party's state unit announced on Friday ahead of 2017 Punjab Assembly polls.
A release issued by AICC general secretary Janardan Dwivedi said Congress president Sonia Gandhi has appointed Capt Amarinder Singh, MP, as president of Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee with immediate effect.
Amarinder replaces Pratap Singh Bajwa, whose resignation was accepted by party president Sonia Gandhi yesterday. The move is consequent to the resignation of Pratap Singh Bajwa from the presidentship of the Punjab unit of the party, the release added.
The release said that Soni, a former Union Minister, was appointed as the Chairperson of the Campaign Committee for the 2017 Punjab Assembly polls.
"I am overwhelmed and I am grateful to both the Congress president and vice president for having chosen me. It is a sensitive task," Amarinder said.
Also, former Punjab minister Lal Singh, a prominent OBC face in the state, will be the new senior vice-president of its state unit while Dalit leader Sadhu Singh Dharamsot will be the vice-chairman of the Campaign Committee.
Ludhiana MP Ravneet Singh Bittu, the grandson of former state chief minister Beant Singh, was appointed as convener of the Campaign Committee. Further appointments will be made shortly, Dwivedi's statement added.
Amarinder said he has been PCC chief twice but after having lost twice he said "it is a challenge, but we are coming into the job at a time when the Akali-BJP alliance position is very poor. I think we should have a headstart on that and it is a question of consolidating and building on".
He said he will put a team in place soon and carry out an intensive contact with people in the state, especially targeting the youth which comprise of 40 per cent of the
population.
"Hopefully soon. We will make our plans and move. The full team will be in place and the programme will be put in place in the next 10 days or so," he said, adding that there is no dissension within the party and it will move unitedly to dethrone the ruling Akali-BJP combine.
Asked about the issues, he said, governance is a failure in Punjab and government has totally destroyed the social and economic fabric of the state. He added that economy was in bad shape and industry was moving out of the state, with agriculture turning unremuerative and farmers committing suicide and it is a challenge to set these things right in the state.
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