M A I N   N E W S

Hanspal is PPCC President
Bhajan Lal, Hooda swap places
Prashant Sood
Tribune News Service

New Delhi, July 31
The Congress today appointed Mr H S Hanspal as president of the Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee and Mr Bhajan Lal as chief of the party in Haryana.

The much-awaited announcements were made this evening by AICC general secretary Mohsina Kidwai after Punjab Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh resigned as Punjab PCC chief and Mr Bhupinder Singh Hooda resigned as Haryana PCC chief. Mr Hooda has been made CLP leader in place of Mr Bhajan Lal.

The appointment of Mr Hanspal and Mr Bhajan Lal has come into force with immediate effect.

Capt Amarinder Singh, who is in the Capital, had a telephonic talk with Mrs Kidwai before the name of Punjab PCC chief was announced.

Today’s decisions made by Congress President Sonia Gandhi are culmination of a long exercise in which names of several leaders from Punjab and Haryana were considered for the top party post in the two states.

While Punjab Chief Minister wanted to quit as PCC chief owing to his heavy administrative responsibilities, Mr Hooda had been PCC chief in Haryana for over five years.

Mr Hanspal, who has been two-time Rajya Sabha member, was at the AICC when the announcement about his elevation was made. Surrounded by his supporters, Mr Hanspal (65) told The Tribune that he would strive to take along all the Congress leaders and workers in the state.

He said that the party had won the polls on the issue of providing clean administration and he would carry the message of the work done by Amarinder Singh government to the people. A science graduate, Mr Hanspal was born in Sialkot, now in Pakistan, and was a secretary in the minority cell at AICC.

By appointing Mr Hanspal, the Congress high command has given weight to the argument that the PCC chief should be a man of Chief Minister’s choice. Several ministers and MLAs in the past few days had been lobbying with the Congress high command to appoint a person of Chief Minister’s choice as PCC chief.

Though Mr Shamsher Singh Dullo, a Dalit MP who was among the aspirants, had a meeting with Mrs Sonia Gandhi yesterday, the high command decided to appoint a person from the backward classes to the top post. Leaders backing Mr Hanspal argued that Congress Cabinet in Punjab had at least four ministers from the SC community and the party had also given representation to the main minority in the state while deciding the Rajya Sabha seat.

The backward classes in Punjab, though less in numbers, have been traditional supporters of the Congress and had backed the party in the last Assembly elections. Mr Hanspal also had backing of at least two senior AICC leaders.

In Haryana, the high command apparently decided to give the reigns of the party to Mr Bhajan Lal who has assured of making the Chautala government uncomfortable in the near future. While Mr Birender Singh remained a top contender for the post till the last, the high command decided to for a more convenient swap, making Mr Hooda the CLP leader in place of Mr Bhajan Lal. Mr Hooda also favoured this arrangement.

Several Punjab Congress leaders, including Mr Charanjit Singh Channi, MP, greeted Mr Hanspal on his appointment at the AICC. Others to hail his appointment were Mr Lakhwinder Singh, head of the party’s backward cell, Mr Basant Singh, former MLA, Mr Surinder Gupta, Faridkot DCC chief, Mr Darshan Singh Brar and Mr Ishar Singh, former ministers, Mr Devender Mahajan of Youth Congress and Ms Surinder Kaur of Mahila Congress.