Congress has handed Sachin Pilot a familiar problem and a bigger opportunity.
NEW DELHI: The Congress leadership last week finally responded to 'Mayday' calls from Punjab rebels and brought in Sachin Pilot, replacing Bhupesh Baghel, to prevent a crash landing of the deeply fractured state unit ahead of the assembly elections early next year.Months of open infighting between Charanjit Singh Channi, the former chief minister leading the rebel camp, and Raja Warring, the state unit chief, not just embarrassed the Congress but also threatened to derail its 2027 campaign.Before being put in the driver's seat in Punjab, Pilot was in charge of Chhattisgarh, where Baghel remains a key Congress leader and former chief minister.Why Congress was forced to budge The Congress had sent former Chhattisgarh chief minister Bhagel to Punjab in February this year to defuse the brewing Channi vs Warring crisis in the state unit.
Ironically, as things turned out, Baghel faced resistance and became part of the crisis, with the Channi camp openly accusing him of siding with Warring.
More so, since July, after the party’s central leadership decided to ignore Channi’s claim for the top post in the state and announced that it would continue with Warring as state Congress president.Bhupesh Baghel had asserted that it is not a 'child's play' and the decision of the high command will not change.
With several senior state leaders backing Channi, the fight turned ugly and Baghel became ineffective.
Congress meetings in the districts saw open “Go back Baghel” chants from Channi supporters, taking the infighting to the streets and embarrassing the top leadership.So, while the ruling Aam Aadmi Party was already in full election mode with chief minister Bhagwant Mann at the centre of its campaign, the Congress was still struggling to get its senior leadership to sit across the table.Not just the AAP, even the BJP and the Akalis had their house in order and were planning their electoral moves on the ground.
With the party's 2027 campaign failing to take off under Baghel, the Congress was forced to budge and turn to Pilot.Why Sachin Pilot The Congress decision to send Pilot to Punjab, while ironic, may still be the best bet for the leadership.
Sachin Pilot, during his years in the Congress, has seen enough internal wars to know how quickly a fight over one post can turn into a larger battle over leadership, political space and, of course, eventually the chief minister's chair.Throwback to Rajasthan, where he spent years at the centre of a similar leadership tussle with senior leader Ashok Gehlot.
Pilot brings something the Congress needs badly right now: the experience of being at the centre of a difficult internal power struggle.Punjab Congress working president welcomed Sachin Pilot’s appointment, saying it will help iron out differences within the state unit.
Pilot has led the Rajasthan unit, worked closely with the high command, weathered the bitter internal battle, survived the fallout and then rebuilt his position within the Congress.He was appointed Rajasthan Congress chief in 2014, after the party's abysmal performance in the 2013 assembly election.
Over the next four years, he emerged as one of the key faces of the party's rebuilding effort before Congress returned to power in 2018.
That victory, however, did not give him the chief minister's chair.Ashok Gehlot became chief minister, while Pilot was made deputy chief minister and continued as PCC president.
While both sides got something, the arrangement never really settled the rivalry between Gehlot and Pilot.By 2020, those differences exploded into an open rebellion.Pilot left Jaipur with a group of MLAs and challenged the Gehlot government.
Congress responded by removing him as deputy chief minister and state president.
The Gehlot camp even accused him of working with the BJP.
A truce was eventually worked out, and Pilot stayed with Congress.But he never quite returned to the position he had occupied before and has been on the sidelines ever since.
He remained a prominent face in the party and was later given charge of Chhattisgarh, but his role in Rajasthan remained limited.It is interesting how, in Rajasthan, Pilot was the leader asking the Congress high command to listen to a dissatisfied camp.
In Punjab, he now has to convince dissatisfied leaders to accept the high command's decisions and work together.That may be why Congress believes he is best suited for the job.Baghel gone.
Will Warring be next?
But will Pilot’s appointment end the crisis in the Punjab unit?Channi's supporters had demanded Warring be removed as Punjab Congress chief, and the Jalandhar MP be declared Congress’s chief ministerial face for the 2027 assembly polls.
The Congress has not accepted either of the two demands.
So, while Channi has not made any significant gains, Warring has been left wondering if he will be the next to be axed.Warring was picked up to lead and rebuild the Punjab unit after the Congress was decimated in the 2022 assembly polls.
Channi, who was the chief minister then, led the Congress to its worst-ever performance in the state.
The Congress not just lost its government to AAP but was also reduced to 18 seats in the 117-member assembly.
The leadership tussle between the two had been brewing for quite some time.
But as is the Congress’s wont, the party kept dilly-dallying on the issue for nearly 4 years.
Finally, when the Congress did take a decision, it ended up opening deep faultlines.For now, both camps have welcomed his appointment.
Warring said Pilot's energy and dynamism would "for sure" add to the vigour of the party ahead of the crucial polls, while Gurdaspur MP Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa, a close associate of Channi, said Pilot's experience, leadership and connect with the people would give new strength and momentum to the Congress in Punjab.Punjab Congress working president Raj Kumar Verka hopes that under Pilot’s leadership all state leaders would come together.
"Pilot knows all leaders of Punjab, and they also have confidence in him," said Verka.For Pilot, this may be his first real test.
If party leadership decides to keep Warring, he has to get Channi, Randhawa and other leaders to fall in line.
If Warring goes, he has to make sure one problem is not replaced by the other.
Congress has a lot at stake The Congress, which remains the main challenger for now, cannot afford this infighting because Punjab is one of the states where it still has a real chance.
There is anti-incumbency against the Bhagwant Mann-led AAP government.In 2022, AAP swept 92 of the 117 assembly seats, while Congress was reduced to 18.
But the 2024 Lok Sabha election brought some relief for the grand old party.
The Congress won seven of Punjab's 13 seats, compared with AAP's three, showing that the party still has enough ground to be a serious challenger.
AAP is perhaps no longer riding the wave that brought it to power in 2022 and is now defending its record under Bhagwant Mann.
Raghav Chadha's exit has also added to the churn in the party.The BJP and the Akalis are still on the margins of the state’s politics.
But the scenario could change very fast.
The BJP is going all out to broaden its organisational base and rope in leaders from other parties.
There are also reports of talks between the BJP and the Akalis to revive their old alliance.
The Congress needs to remember that the BJP is coming off a massive victory in West Bengal and is looking to expand its footprint in Punjab as well.Punjab could shape Pilot's Rajasthan future Pilot has already made it clear that he sees Punjab as a comeback opportunity for the Congress.
On Monday, he said he was confident that with a strong organisation, collective effort and the energy of party workers, Congress could return to power in the state.Join conversation Share your thoughts in the comments Be respectful · TOI community guidelines Pilot has the experience of being a part of successful strategising in Himachal Pradesh in the previous assembly polls and has also been a senior observer for the Kerala polls, where Congress returned to power after a decade.If Pilot can manage to bring the rival Punjab camps together and help the Congress put up a strong show in 2027, it will add to his standing within the party at a time when Rajasthan is already looking ahead to the 2028 assembly election.There has long been speculation over a bigger role for Pilot in Rajasthan.
He may not have got it yet, but a successful Punjab stint could considerably strengthen his case.For a leader who has had to rebuild his own position in the party before, Punjab could well become the next big step in that comeback.Get the latest India News and Live updates.
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