Charanjit Singh Channi Becomes The First Dalit Chief Minister of Punjab

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Charanjit Singh Channi is Punjab's new chief minister.

India Tomorrow

NEW DELHI—Charanjit Singh Channi was sworn in as new Chief Minister of Punjab after Capt Amarinder Singh resigned from the post. The swearing-in ceremony was attended, among others, by Rahul Gandhi.

Channi is the first Dalit Sikh chief of Punjab. Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa and Om Prakashi Soni were appointed deputy chief ministers. During Amarinder Singh’s tenure, there was no post of deputy chief minister. Channi belongs to the Balmiki community.

The party changed its chief minister just four months before the next assembly elections in the state. While the change has taken place owing to a fight between Navjot Singh Sidhu and Capt Amarinder Singh for over six months, party leaders say that change had become inevitable as Capt Amarinder Singh had become unpopular among the people of the state due to his style of functioning.

Channi is considered to be close to Sidhu.

Meanwhile, the Congress party’s Punjab in-charge Harish Rawat, in a tweet, said that assembly elections in Punjab will be fought under the leadership of Sidhu.

By giving CM’s post to a Dalit Sikh, the party, according to political analysts, is eyeing 35 per cent of Dalit Sikhs in the state. However, it is not known if the Dalit Sikhs have ever voted en bloc in the past.

But by bringing in a Dalit Sikh as CM, the Congress has made a pre-emptive strike against the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) of Arvind Kejriwal that was trying to woo the Dalit Sikhs towards the party.

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