CHANDIGARH: Former Olympian and ex-Indian hockey captain Pargat Singh, currently a Congress MLA from Jalandhar Cantonment, has been appointed president of the Punjab Congress, replacing Amarinder Singh Raja Warring as the party prepares for the 2027 assembly elections.
The announcement came hours after Warring stepped down from the post and blamed AICC Punjab in-charge Sachin Pilot for his exit. Pilot had held consultations with state leaders before the leadership change.
Reacting to Singh's appointment, Warring wrote on X: "Congratulations to Sardar @PargatSOfficial ji for being appointed as the President of the Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee @INCPunjab. My best wishes."
Sources said three-time MLA Pargat Singh, who is currently the AICC secretary in charge of Jammu and Kashmir, was strongly backed by Congress national president Mallikarjun Kharge and was among the names being considered by the party high command for the state party chief.
The Congress had also considered appointing Vijay Inder Singla, a Hindu face, as state president, but ultimately chose a Jat Sikh to replace Warring, who is also a Jat Sikh.
Sources said there was last-minute lobbying against Singla in favour of a former state cabinet minister and sitting member of parliament who is also a Hindu face of the state unit.
The change comes after the party last month replaced its central in-charge, appointing Pilot in place of Bhupesh Baghel.
Baghel was seen as partisan in a battle largely between camps led by Warring and former chief minister Charanjit Singh Channi.
Pargat Singh was seen as largely neutral.
Within the Congress, Pargat has also held organisational responsibilities.
In 2021, then Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee (PPCC) president Navjot Singh Sidhu appointed him general secretary (organisation) of the state unit.
Singh will face the task of bringing together a fractured state unit, where several leaders have chief ministerial ambitions, while leading the party into the 2027 assembly election. He will also have to coordinate leaders from different factions and prepare the Congress for a contest in which organisational consolidation will be a key focus.
Infighting intensified after July 1, when the high command announced that Warring would continue as state unit president.
From hockey to politics
A 62-year-old Singh served in the Punjab Police and rose to the rank of superintendent of police before leaving the service and entering politics in 2012. He won his first election that year on a Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) ticket from Jalandhar Cantonment, defeating Congress candidate Jagbir Singh Brar.
In July 2016, the SAD suspended him and he resigned from the party, accusing Sukhbir Singh Badal of betraying the trust of voters. He subsequently joined the Awaaz-e-Punjab front floated by Navjot Singh Sidhu and the Bains brothers before joining the Congress.
Singh retained his Jalandhar Cantonment seat in the 2017 and 2022 assembly elections. He briefly served as Punjab's sports and education minister and NRI affairs minister from September 26, 2021, to March 11, 2022, during the tenure of Channi as chief minister.
In the 2022 assembly elections, when the AAP swept the polls and formed the government for the first time in the state, Singh retained Jalandhar Cantonment by defeating fellow former hockey international Surinder Singh Sodhi of the AAP by around 5,800 votes.
Born in Mithapur village in Jalandhar, known for producing hockey players, Singh played as a full-back and was widely regarded as one of India's best defenders of his era.
He represented India at the 1988 Seoul Olympics, the 1992 Barcelona Olympics and the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, captaining the team at the last two Games. At Atlanta 1996, he was also India's flag-bearer at the opening ceremony.
Singh received the Arjuna Award in 1989 and the Padma Shri in 1998. After his playing career, he coached the men's national team and later held roles in hockey administration in Punjab, including general secretary of Hockey Punjab in 2017.
Politics in Punjab is currently revolving around the politically influential Jat Sikh community, with the BJP also appointing Kewal Singh Dhillon, from the community, as its state president.
Hindus account for about 40% of the population in the Sikh-majority state and are a key section of the electorate in urban areas. Jat Sikhs account for about 25% of the population and remain the most dominant caste group.
Most chief ministers of Punjab since the state's reorganisation in 1966 have been Jat Sikhs, including current CM Bhagwant Mann of the AAP.