Patiala: Punjab Congress president Pargat Singh on Saturday met Sikh preacher Bhai Ranjit Singh Dhadrianwale at Gurdwara Parmeshar Dwar Sahib near Patiala, in a visit the party is presenting as part of its effort to build support in Malwa ahead of the 2027 Punjab Assembly elections.

Source: The Punjab Standard, Nov 14, 2026

The Punjab Congress said the two talked about the current situation in the state, social issues and ideas for Punjab's betterment. Vijay Inder Singla, chairman of the party's election management and coordination committee, was with Pargat Singh. Photographs published from the meeting show Dhadrianwale placing a ceremonial scarf around Pargat Singh's neck and the two leaders seated in conversation, with a framed plaque also presented during the visit.

Source: Rozana Spokesman (Threads), Nov 14, 2026

Malwa is the prize the Congress is courting: the region has 69 of Punjab's 117 Assembly seats and will largely decide who forms the next government in 2027. Dhadrianwale has a strong base between Patiala and Sangrur — Sangrur is Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann's home district — and is one of Punjab's most followed preachers, with a YouTube channel of 3 million subscribers, The Punjab Standard reported.

Third religious-centre visit since October

This is Pargat Singh's third visit to a major religious centre since he took charge as Punjab Congress president in October. Last month he met Sant Niranjan Dass, chief of Dera Sachkhand Ballan, which has a huge Ravidassia following in Doaba, and on November 1 he met Baba Gurinder Singh Dhillon, head of Radha Soami Satsang Beas. The visits have taken his outreach across Doaba and Malwa in six weeks.

The visits come alongside the party's two new mass-contact drives. The 'Punjab Mangda Insaaf' campaign began on November 11, and Pargat Singh said the Congress would use it to talk directly with people across Punjab and understand the problems and expectations of different sections of society, with special public outreach programmes in Malwa, Majha and Doaba led by five to six senior leaders in different regions.

A day later, the party started its 'Jawani Sambhal' cycle yatra from Chamkaur Sahib with Punjab in-charge Sachin Pilot and former Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi. The yatra will take the party's message on drugs, gangster culture and crime to Punjab's youth.

The ruling AAP has already named candidates for 71 of the 117 seats. Pargat Singh said on Friday that the Congress was 'taking our time to assess everything carefully,' adding: 'We will liberate Punjab from these looters.' No AAP reaction to Saturday's meeting had been reported in the sources checked at the time of publishing.