The elevation of Charanjit Singh Channi to the chief ministership, which was seen by many as the direct outcome of the internal rivalries in the Congress, failed to help the party retain the State. A majority of voters in Punjab rated his six-month tenure negatively. However, his predecessor Amarinder Singh’s tenure was rated far worse and it seems that Mr. Channi may have actually helped the Congress recover slightly in his short stint as the Chief Minister.
Brewing discontent
Comparing the two governments, as high as eight in every 10 voters were found dissatisfied with the four-and-a-half years of the Congress government led by Capt. Singh, with the anger waning a bit after Mr. Channi took over. The discontent remained strong with well over one in every two unhappy with Mr. Channi’s government as well (Table 1).
