Chandigarh (Punjab) [India], September 20 : Congress MLA Charanjit Singh Channi took oath as Punjab’s 16th Chief Minister on Monday. Channi a three-time MLA from Rupnagar’s Chamkaur Sahib – will be Punjab’s first Dalit Chief Minister. He has served as Technical Education Minister in the Captain Amarinder Singh government. According to the official website of the Punjab Government, Channi remained Municipal Councilor for three terms and moved on to become the President of Municipal Council Kharar for a two-term.
He was elected to the Punjab Vidhan Sabha from Chamkaur Sahib Consistency for the first time in 2007. He was elected to the assembly seat again in 2012 and then in 2017. In 2015, Channi was elected as Leader of the Opposition in the 14th Punjab Vidhan Sabha. In 2017, he was appointed as the Cabinet Minister for Technical Education and Industrial Training, Employment Generation and also Science and Technology in the government of Punjab On Sunday, after several rounds of parleys, Channi, Punjab’s first Dalit Chief Minister, was selected for the post by the party high command, following Captain Amarinder Singh’s resignation. Earlier today, leader Pawan Kumar Bansal informed that party leader Sukhjinder Randhawa and Brahm Mohindra will serve as two deputies to Punjab’s Chief Minister Channi. Amarinder Singh on Saturday submitted his resignation to state Governor Banwarilal Purohit, following months of infighting between him and Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee (PPCC) chief Navjot Singh Sidhu. These development came months before the 2022 Punjab Assembly elections.
Rawat’s statement on Sidhu’s leadership undermines Punjab CM’s authority: Jakhar
A day after Punjab Congress in-charge Harish Rawat hinted that the party would fight the forthcoming Assembly polls under Navjot Singh Sidhu, former state Congress chief Sunil Jakhar on Monday raised objection to the statement and said the comments from Rawat were baffling. Jakhar, who was removed as Punjab Congress president to make way for Navjot Singh Sidhu in July, tweeted, “On the swearing-in day of Charanjit Channi as CM, Mr Rawats’s statement that “elections will be fought under Sidhu”, is baffling. It’s likely to undermine CM’s authority but also negate the very ‘raison d’etre’ of his selection for this position.” It must be noted that Jakhar, was among the frontrunners for the chief ministerial post after Captain Amarinder Singh’s resignation on Saturday. Jakhar was one of the four probables, including Sidhu, Partap Singh Bajwa and Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa, for the chief ministerial post in Punjab.
"On the swearing-in day of Charanjit Channi as CM, Mr Rawats’s statement that “elections will be fought under Sidhu”,is baffling. It’s likely to undermine CM’s authority but also negate the very ‘raison d’être’ of his selection for this position": Congress leader Sunil Jakhar pic.twitter.com/TOoLSGNuxD
After several rounds of parleys, Charanjit Singh Channi, Punjab’s first Dalit Chief Minister, was selected for the post by the party high command. Meanwhile, Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa and Brahm Mohindra will be the deputy chief minister, stitching a caste combination ahead of the crucial Assembly election, which is due next year.
