Factionalism within the Ropar unit of the Congress has come to the fore after the party failed to field candidates in all wards for the upcoming municipal council elections in the town. The development has triggered a blame game among local leaders, exposing divisions within the party ahead of the crucial 2027 Punjab Assembly elections.
A section of Congress leaders owing affiliation to former All India Youth Congress president Barinder Dhillon has openly questioned the party leadership over what they termed as poor planning and organisational failure in the distribution of tickets for the Ropar Municipal Council polls.
The controversy erupted after Congress candidates were announced for only a limited number of wards in the 21-member municipal council. Leaders aligned with Dhillon took to social media, alleging that the party had failed to put up candidates in several wards, thereby giving political advantage to rival parties and independent candidates.
When contacted by The Tribune, Barinder Dhillon termed the situation unfortunate and said the Congress had historically remained strong in Ropar municipal politics. He pointed out that in the previous municipal council, the Congress had won 17 out of 21 wards and held a dominant position in the civic body.
“It is unfortunate that the Congress could not field candidates in all 21 wards of the Ropar Municipal Council. The party had a strong base here and should have contested every seat,” Dhillon said.
He further alleged that he was not consulted during the ticket distribution process by Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee president Amarinder Singh Raja Warring. According to him, this sidelining of senior local leaders had contributed to the present crisis.
Dhillon claimed that the Congress had failed to field candidates in wards number 5, 11, 12, 13, 14, 19 and 21. He maintained that the absence of official Congress nominees in these wards would weaken the party’s electoral prospects and confuse traditional Congress voters.
However, district Congress president Ashwani Sharma disputed these claims and asserted that the party had actually fielded candidates in 16 out of the 21 wards.
Explaining the reasons behind the missing candidates in certain wards, Sharma said that in two wards, former Congress leaders had opted to contest as independents while enjoying support from other political groups as well. He said the party decided not to field official candidates there to avoid internal confrontation.
“In three wards, prospective Congress candidates could obtain No Objection Certificates from the government, which prevented them from contesting on the party symbol,” Sharma claimed.
The contradictory statements from senior Congress leaders have highlighted the deep factional divide within the party in the Ropar district. Political observers believe the episode reflects larger organizational challenges being faced by the Congress in Punjab, where local rivalries and groupism continue to affect party unity.
The infighting comes at a time when political parties are aggressively preparing for the municipal council elections, which are being viewed as an important indicator of public mood before the 2027 Assembly elections in Punjab.
Failure to project unity at the local level could hurt the Congress politically, especially in regions like Ropar, where the party has traditionally enjoyed significant support.
