Interview/ Bhupesh Baghel, Congress’s state in-charge for Punjab
AS THE CONGRESS’S Punjab unit is grappling with chronic factionalism, the state in-charge Bhupesh Baghel has been tasked with managing the competing camps. In an interview, he talks about the party’s organisational strategy, the BJP’s growing presence and the chances of coming back to power. Excerpts:
Q/ Despite your earnest efforts, factionalism is thriving in the party.
Which party does not have factionalism, and which party does not have competition among leaders? Since we are in the opposition, we are in the spotlight. There is no discussion about what is happening in the other parties. The Aam Aadmi Party had seven members who broke away. Since the AAP is in the government, there was no discussion about it.
There is factionalism within the BJP, too, but that is not visible. They were not able to handle the Gen Z agitation. Everyone kept pushing the responsibility to the other and the matter went out of hand.
Q/ The Congress is a force in Punjab, but this time it faces competition from both the AAP and the BJP.
They fought in the Lok Sabha elections as well. Amit Shah said they would fight alone. People here are educated and are active on social media. They know everything. Be it the Gen Z movement or the Ram Mandir issue, they know everything. Their reality has come out now. So, our fight will be with the Aam Aadmi Party.
Q/ The BJP’s vote share increased from 6.6 per cent in the assembly elections to 18 per cent in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
Ram Mandir was built at that time…. Because of this, their vote share increased from 6 per cent to 18 per cent. But the recent incidents—the robbery in the Ram Mandir and the Gen Z protests at Jantar Mantar—have changed the situation.
Q/ Is the leadership issue in Punjab Congress about personalities, or does it reflect a deeper ideological and organisational weakness?
The party wants to use both faces. The one who is strong in the organisation is in the organisation (Warring), and the one who has a connect with the people is the chairman of the campaign committee (Channi). This is the party’s decision.
Q/ There are allegations from within the party that Warring has good ties with Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, which affects his performance as opposition leader.
We had 18 seats in the assembly. Two years later, when the Lok Sabha elections were held, we won seven of 13 seats, while the Aam Aadmi Party got only three. If there was such an understanding between them, why would there be such a result? Such rumours are being spread to defame the opposition.
Q/ If the BJP goes with the communal narrative it often uses during elections, it could take away Hindu votes from the Congress. Do you think the Congress’s organisational might will be able to counter that?
Their narrative has gone beyond that. People are saying they are not working for the people, but are just doing Hindu-Muslim politics. People are now asking when will the employment issue be addressed? Modi has been disrespected 75 times by the US President Donald Trump and there was no response from the PM. The country has never seen such a helpless PM.
Q/ What is the Congress’s roadmap on the issues of unemployment, drugs and agrarian distress?
The Congress believes that two people are being entrusted with all the properties, land, ports and other things—Adani and Ambani. How will the other businessmen get opportunities? From Kerala to Ladakh, everything is being given to them. We need decentralisation. As Rahul Gandhi says, small businesses provide employment, but Modi has destroyed them.
Q/ Punjab is a state where the Congress still has an organisational base. How critical is the state to the party’s broader strategy of a national revival?
Punjab is a secular state and the BJP’s communal gimmicks do not work here. On another side, Bhagwant Mann has pushed the state back 25 years and businesses are not coming to Punjab.
