Punjab CM refutes dissent due to Prashant Kishor's interference in poll ticket allotment

Refuting reports of dissent within Punjab Congress, CM Capt Amarinder Singh on Tuesday, asserted that his political advisor Prashant Kishor did not have a say in poll ticket distribution. Singh added that Kishor had no decision-making authority as the CM's principal advisor. Kishor has been roped in by Singh for his re-election campaign in 2022.

CM: 'Kishor only advisor, no decision making

"There is no question of it. Kishor has no say in the matter,” said CM Captain Amarinder Singh, amid reports of resentment brewing in the Punjab Congress over his newly appointed principal advisor Prashant Kishor deciding on the tickets. He added, "His (Kishor’s) role as my principal advisor is limited. It is only advisory in nature, with no decision-making authority vested in him".

Reports of internal turmoil in Punjab Congress

Earlier in the day, reports claimed that Prashant Kishor has suggested not giving tickets to nearly one-third of the incumbent lawmakers, leading to a furore in Punjab Congress. Several leaders reportedly questioned Kishor's authority adding that the party decided the tickets. Poll tickets are decided by the respective Pradesh Committees and later okayed by the Central Core committee of the Congress. The grand old party currently hold 80 members in the 177-seat assembly, with 80-year old Singh seeking re-election.

On March 1, Punjab CM Captain Amarinder Singh announced that political strategist Prashant Kishor has joined his team as a principal advisor. With a rank equivalent to a cabinet member and getting a token fee of Re-1, Kishor has already assumed his role, but is yet to start his campaign. He currently manages Mamata Banerjee's and MK Stalin's re-election campaign bid.

Opposition from Punjab Congress leaders

After gaining acclaim owing to his crucial role in BJP winning a majority on its own in the 2014 General election, Kishor's Indian Political Action Committee also ran successful campaigns for AAP (2015) and Mahagatbandhan (2015). However, he failed to propel the Congress-Samajwadi Party alliance to victory in the 2017 Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls. Incidentally, Kishor joining hands with Congress for the 2022 state Assembly polls comes months after he turned down Singh's offer in this regard.

In June 2020, both Punjab Congress president Sunil Jakhar and Congress' state affairs in-charge Asha Kumari reportedly made it clear that the political strategist was not needed for the next Assembly election. However, the Punjab CM revealed that Congress president Sonia Gandhi had left the decision to him. Maintaining that he had taken the party's legislators into confidence, Capt. Amarinder Singh divulged that 55 Congress MLAs were in favour of bringing back Kishor to handle the campaign.