Bajwa stresses on loyalty, seniority as factors for deciding next Punjab Cong chief

New Delhi [India], March 21 (ANI): Senior Punjab Congress leader Partap Singh Bajwa on Monday emphasised that the appointment of the next state party chief should be based on the seniority and loyalty of the person.
Bajwa submitted his resignation as a Rajya Sabha member to Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu on Monday after being elected to the Punjab Assembly in the recently concluded state elections.
“I leave everything to party high command, three factors need to be looked after. First is the loyalty of the person for the Leader of Opposition and PCC president, the second factor is seniority which should be given a priority. You cannot make Colonel as General overnight. And the last point is the capability of the person if the party wants to win the longer race,” Bajwa told ANI.
Asked about the reason behind the party’s defeat in the recently concluded Punjab elections, Bajwa said, “My take is that there was no effort at the top. Senior-most leadership was not playing in the interest of the party. We need to work together and we must learn from history. If we fight unitedly, we can bring Congress back. Our vote share has also come down.”
However, Bajwa refrained to comment on the G-23 issue and said that he is not in touch with any leader from the group.
Partap Singh Bajwa won the Qadian Assembly seat in the Punjab Assembly polls.
He is also considered to be a top contender for the post of Leader of Opposition in Punjab Assembly and also for Congress state chief.
Following Congress chief Sonia Gandhi’s orders, the party’s Punjab president Navjot Singh Sidhu tendered his resignations after the poll drubbing.
In the recently concluded Punjab elections, Bhagwant Mann-led Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) dethroned the Congress party in the state Assembly, winning 92 seats of the 117 constituencies, pushing Congress to the distant second at 18 seats. Shiromani Akali Dal won three seats and the BJP on two seats. (ANI)