Charanjit Singh Channi is new Punjab CM

Chandigarh: The suspense over the successor to Amarinder Singh ended on Sunday with Congress President Sonia Gandhi clearing the name of Dalit Cabinet Minister Charanjit Singh Channi as the next Punjab Chief Minister.

A day after Congress veteran Captain Amarinder Singh stepped down, Charanjit Singh Channi was chosen as the first Dalit CM of Punjab. The development comes amid a bitter power tussle with State Congress chief Navjot Singh Sidhu with less than five months to go for the Assembly polls.

Channi, who was the Technical Educational and Industrial Training Minister in the Amarinder Singh Cabinet, was, for quite some time, a hard critic of the Chief Minister. His appointment was announced by State party in charge Harish Rawat on Twitter.

"It gives me immense pleasure to announce that #CharanjitSinghChanni has been unanimously elected as the Leader of the Congress Legislature Party of Punjab", Rawat said. It is learnt that the new-appointed leader of the Congress Legislative Party (CLP) is meeting Governor Banwarilal Purohit to stake claim to form the new government.

The 48-year-old Channi has also been Leader of Opposition in the Punjab Assembly during the Parkash Singh Badal-led Akali-BJP government.

Earlier, Congress party was in favour of Sunil Jhakhar as the Chief Minister, but the party leadership had second thoughts on his name as several MPs opposed it. Another leader Ambika Soni had declined to become the Punjab Chief Minister in a late night meeting with Rahul Gandhi.

Sources close to her said she has instead suggested that a Sikh become the Punjab Chief Minister. After the refusal, the Congress party considered other names, including Pratap Singh Bajwa, Sukhwinder Singh Randhawa and Ravneet Singh Bittu.

Sources said discussion on a new Chief Minister was held and also strategy to pacify Amarinder Singh was discussed. Since Ambika Soni hails from Punjab, the party leadership wanted her to become the Chief Minister till elections are held.

Sources said the party wants to project a non Sikh face ahead of the polls to counter the AAP which is gaining ground in the State. Sources also said that the party wanted a Sikh, Navjot Singh Sidhu, as the State Congress chief and a non-Sikh CM candidate combination in the polls.

When Congress is soon to announce the name of the new chief minister, a majority of MLAs have proposed the name of Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa and the top leaders in Chandigarh are awaiting the green signal from the high command.

In a meeting at Rahul Gandhi's Delhi residence, most of the MLAs are said to be in favour of a Sikh Chief Minister. Sources also said that there are going to be two deputy chief ministers. After the name of CM is announced, he is likely to meet the Governor later in the day.

Meanwhile, a new controversy erupted over the new CM as BJP charges against him saying that Channi was accused in 'Me Too' charge. BJP further said that Channi was accused of harassing a woman IAS officer. In October 2018, Channi was accused of sending inappropriate messages to a woman IAS officer, who alleged Channi had sent her multiple messages to which she had objected, but Channi continued to send them. The woman IAS official, when she received one message late night, had decided to object and escalate the matter. Turns out he had sent an Urdu couplet to the woman officer 'by mistake' which she objected to. Channi, however, later apologised for the same.