Despite claims from Congress general secretary Bhupesh Baghel that there are no objections to Amrinder Singh Raja Warring's continuation as Punjab unit president, a significant faction of leaders, including Jalandhar MP Charanjit Singh Channi, are actively pushing for his replacement, citing the need for an 'uncompromised' leader.
Sources said the party top brass including Gandhi and Kharge held several hours of discussions with Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar, apart from meeting them separately, and is likely to take a call on a possible change of guard in the state after the Rajya Sabha polls, which are due next month.
The Congress party's delay in naming the next Chief Minister of Kerala has drawn criticism, particularly from key ally IUML, which warns of potential political fallout from the prolonged uncertainty.
The Congress has pinned its hopes on many of the old-timers and also given representation to some new faces in its first list of candidates announced for the Chhattisgarh assembly polls scheduled next month.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Monday conducted raids at over a dozen locations in Chhattisgarh including at premises linked to state Congress leaders as part of an ongoing probe into the alleged coal levy scam, officials said.
Senior Congress functionary Praveen Chakravarty has questioned the DMK's flagship women's assistance scheme, suggesting it's superstitious to believe it alone will ensure electoral success, citing examples of similar schemes failing to secure victories for other parties.
Amid a talk of leadership change in Chhattisgarh, a number of legislators from the state has arrived in the national capital in support of Baghel, who is also reaching Delhi.
Chhattisgarh minister T S Singh Deo on Sunday didn't attend the Congress legislature party meeting being held at the official residence of Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel in Raipur.
Union Minister Charan Das Mahant was on Monday appointed the acting Pradesh Congress Committee president of poll-bound Chhattisgarh, a week after senior party leaders in the state including PCC Chief Nand Kumar Patel were killed in a Naxal attack.
Most of them said 'everything is fine' in the state Congress after landing at the airport in Raipur in a special aircraft.
Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel reached the national capital on Saturday and is likely to raise with the Congress leadership the issue of his differences with state minister T S Singh Deo, sources said.
The final rites of Chhattisgarh Congress chief Nand Kumar Patel and his son Dinesh, who were killed in the Naxal attack on Saturday, were performed with state honours at their native village Nandeli in Raigarh district on Monday.
Unfazed by the dastardly attack by Maoists, Opposition Congress in Chhattisgarh will soon resume its parivartan yatra from Keslur village near Jiram Ghati, the spot where its convoy was ambushed on May 25. Congress workers will pay tribute to the victims including state Congress chief Nand Kumar Patel, his son Dinesh, former leader of opposition in the assembly Mahendra Karma and former member of legislative assembly Uday Mudliyar among others.
Modi said the situation is rapidly changing and a new era of peace is setting in Naxal-affected areas.
The Bhupesh Baghel government in Chhattisgarh is trying to blame its legislators for its failures as eight MLAs have been dropped by the Congress in its first list of candidates for the assembly polls, state Bharatiya Janata Party chief Arun Sao claimed on Sunday.
The two tribal dominated divisions of Surguja and Bastar having 26 assembly seats that contributed hugely to the Congress' landslide victory in Chhattisgarh in 2018 have swung to the Bharatiya Janata Party this time.
The Congress this time won six of the 10 seats reserved for the SC category, one less than in 2018.
While the BJP said it has only portrayed some incidents, which happened during the previous Congress regime through the cartoons which are not meant to hurt anyone, the grand old party accused it of releasing such illustrations out of frustration.
The ruling Congress is seeking to retain power in Chhattisgarh by banking on the welfare schemes of the Bhupesh Baghel government, while the Bharatiya Janata Party is hoping to corner it on the issues of alleged corruption, religious conversions and unfulfilled poll promises.
In a major organisational revamp, the Congress on Friday appointed former Chhattisgarh chief minister Bhupesh Baghel as general secretary in-charge of Punjab and Rajya Sabha MP Syed Naseer Hussain as general secretary for Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh.
With the second list, the total number of candidates declared by the Congress went up to 83 out of the total of 90.
He also predicted the Congress was likely to bag another resounding mandate in the 90-member assembly, saying some are projecting 75-plus seats for his party but his estimate is anywhere between 60 to 75-plus.
The no-confidence motion was defeated by voice vote in the state assembly shortly after 1 am following a 13-hour debate.
In Telangana, the K Chandrashekhar Rao-led Bharat Rashtra Samithi has been in power since 10 years and in Mizoram, the MNF is in government.
Kharge's remarks came after Modi on Friday said the Congress stands "badly exposed" in front of people for promising to them what the party knows it will never be able to deliver.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi Friday said the Congress stands 'badly exposed' in front of people for promising to them what the party knows it will never be able to deliver.
With billionaire Gautam Adani charged in the United States with alleged bribery and fraud, the Congress on Thursday said it 'vindicates' its demand for a Joint Parliamentary Committee investigation into the various 'scams' involving his conglomerate.
All India Congress Committee spokesperson Radhika Khera on Sunday resigned from the party claiming that criticism over her visit to Lord Ram temple in Ayodhya led to the denial of justice to her in the incident that happened at the Chhattisgarh Congress office.
Donald Trump survived an attempt on his life when a young gunman fired multiple shots at the former US president at a campaign rally in Pennsylvania, injuring his right ear.
The Congress leadership on Friday held separate meetings to review its performances in the assembly polls in Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh, and said its defeat in the two states at the hands of the BJP was unexpected.
The BJP is leading in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh.
A blame game began in the Congress on Tuesday as it failed in its bid to come back to power in Haryana after 10 years, with senior party leader Kumari Selja saying the party high command should assess all reasons that led to the disappointing result and identify the people responsible.
The development comes days after the party's humiliating defeat in the Madhya Pradesh Assembly polls, where the Congress, led by Nath, failed to replace the BJP government.
After the Congress' shock defeat in Haryana, the opposition Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) parties flexed their muscles on Wednesday, accusing the grand old party of ignoring them.
"The Congress government and the chief minister should tell the people of Chhattisgarh what link they have with the accused in this scam sitting in Dubai," he said.
The Bharatiya Janata Party on Wednesday claimed Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel was busy playing a game on his mobile phone during a Congress meeting over selection of candidates for the upcoming assembly polls as he knows his party will not retain power in the state.
A day after drubbing, the Congress on Monday said it will introspect what happened in Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, and Rajasthan as it had hoped of winning these states.
Both Khera and Suman joined the saffron at its headquarters in Delhi in the presence of senior leaders, including BJP national general secretary Vinod Tawde and national media department in-charge Anil Baluni.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Sunday said his party humbly accepts the mandate of Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan, and asserted that the battle of ideology would continue.
The Bharatiya Janata Party swept Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh on Sunday inflicting a resounding defeat on the Congress to tighten its stranglehold in the Hindi heartland, in a big boost for Prime Minister Narendra Modi and setting the tone for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
