Channi Skips Rahul Gandhi’s Speech, Leads Separate Protest

Jalandhar MP Charanjit Singh Channi chose to skip the Lok Sabha speech of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday and instead attended a protest rally in Faridkot. The event highlighted ongoing factionalism within the Punjab Congress unit.

Out of the seven Congress MPs from Punjab, Channi was the only one absent when Gandhi, the Leader of Opposition, attacked the BJP over police action against student protesters at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi.

Congress sources said there was no formal whip to attend Gandhi’s speech. However, Amritsar MP Gurjit Singh Aujla, head of the Congress parliamentary group, sent a WhatsApp message asking all MPs to be present from 12 pm onwards. Gandhi spoke around 1 pm.

Channi instead led a Congress dharna outside Baba Farid University in Faridkot, protesting the alleged cheating racket in the Pharmacy Officer recruitment exam. Punjab Police claim they busted a sophisticated inter-state cheating operation.

The protest was reportedly organized by former MLA Kushaldeep Singh ‘Kikki’ Dhillon, who supports Channi in a bid to remove Amrinder Singh Raja Warring as Punjab Congress president. Several senior Congress leaders backing Channi attended, including MLAs Rana Gurjit Singh, Tript Rajinder Singh Bajwa, Barindermeet Singh Pahra, former minister Bharat Bhushan Ashu, and others.

A leader supporting Channi said the event was planned beforehand and that the exam leak issue is important for Congress to target the Aam Aadmi Party government. “Raja Warring has not held any protest in Punjab. Instead of whiling his time away in Lok Sabha, he should come to Punjab and lead protests like Channi,” the leader said.

Meanwhile, Warring and other Punjab Congress MPs—Aujla, Amar Singh, and Dharamvira Gandhi—protested against the Punjab government in the Parliament complex, alleging multiple paper leaks under AAP rule and demanding the state education minister’s resignation.

The Faridkot event again exposed factionalism in the Punjab Congress. Leaders linked to Warring’s group, including district president Navdeep Singh Babbu Brar, stayed away. The district unit had planned a separate protest for July 31, later postponed after coordination with state leadership.

AICC general secretary in-charge for Punjab Bhupesh Baghel will begin a 10-day tour of the state from Thursday. He will visit several constituencies, mainly in Malwa region, and meet with district presidents and party workers to discuss organization expansion and election preparations.