Chandigarh: Newly-appointed Punjab Congress chief Pargat Singh on Saturday downplayed factionalism in the state unit of the party and said that their team was a good one and all decisions will be taken unanimously while keeping the interests of the state in mind.
The former Hockey player and Indian team captain said he has always played as “full back” — a position centred on supporting the team from behind — and will continue to play the same role in the party by giving prominence to other senior members of the party. The former Olympiad said there is “dictatorship” in the country currently and “we have to bring back democracy”, for which they would fight.
“I have been a team player, and all my seniors have always been respectful to me. We will take all decisions unanimously. I have always played like a full-back, at the back, and I feel there are very good players in our team,” Singh told reporters after his arrival in the national capital.
The former captain of the Indian national men’s hockey team was on Friday appointed the new president of Punjab Congress, replacing Amarinder Singh Raja Warring, who remained in the position for over four and half years. His appointment comes at a time  when the state unit of the party has been ridden with factionalism ahead of state assembly elections due early next year.
“We are a team. This is Rahul Gandhi’s team. We will bring constructive politics to the country. We have to revive democracy, as the country is witnessing dictatorship and we have to revive democracy,” Pargat Singh told reporters.
Asked about the outgoing chief, Singh said, “Raja Warring has been our president for 4.5 years, and he worked hard and did good work. This is an ongoing process, as I have also remained as secretary, general secretary. It is a team, and Raja ji is a player of our team. All players in our team are good, and I have never heard any complaint from anyone. I respect all the seniors, and they have also accorded me respect. The issue is Punjab and not differences amongst us,” he said, adding that everyone will be ahead of him in the team.
On bringing former Congressmen into the party fold, he said, “All are welcome to join back the Congress. Anyone contributing for Punjab is welcome to join the Congress as Punjab will lead.”
He said Punjab will emerge stronger and will present a new example before the country.
After his appointment as the Punjab Congress president, Pargat Singh thanked the party leadership for entrusting him with the responsibility and said he will work with dedication to strengthen the party and serve people in the state. “I sincerely thank Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, K C Venugopal, Punjab Congress in-charge Sachin Pilot and all senior Congress leaders for entrusting me with the responsibility of president of the Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee,” Singh said in a post on X.
Singh, 61, is a former Indian Hockey captain who led the Indian team in the 1992 and 1996 Olympics. He made his entry into the political arena with the Shiromani Akali Dal, but later switched to the Congress. He is a three-time MLA from Jalandhar Cantt and a former Cabinet minister.
Though the PCC President has been changed,  the Congress high command has not dismantled the organizational arrangement created around Warring. The party’s order makes it clear that the working presidents and chairpersons and co-chairpersons of the various election-related committees will continue in their existing positions.
That means Charanjeet Singh Channi’s position remains intact. So do the roles of the other leaders who had been given responsibilities as part of the party’s election preparations. For Channi, therefore, Warring’s removal remains a political gain, but Pargat’s appointment does not hand him control of the state organization.
 Pargat Singh will inherit an organizational structure with three working presidents — Sukhwinder Singh Danny, Raj Kumar Verka, and Sangat Singh Gilzian — while the key election committees will remain headed by senior leaders. Charanjit Singh Channi continues as Campaign Committee chairperson, Vijay Inder Singla heads Election Management and Coordination, Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa the Core Committee, and Dr Amar Singh the Manifesto Committee.