Congress leader and Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday, 4 November 2026, launched a sharp offensive against Union Home Minister Amit Shah at the Congress party's 'Insaaf Rally' near Sangrur, Punjab, directly questioning the Centre's commitment to make the state drug-free within three years. The rally, also addressed by Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge and several senior party leaders, served as the opening salvo of the party's political mobilisation ahead of the 2027 Punjab Assembly elections.

Gandhi Challenges Shah's Three-Year Deadline

Taking direct aim at the Home Minister's declared timeline for eliminating drugs from Punjab, Gandhi questioned its credibility. 'What deadline has he given? Three years? In three years, Amit Shah may not even be the Home Minister. I don't know what he is talking about,' Gandhi remarked, drawing a sharp response from the crowd.

Gandhi pressed Shah to account for the Centre's track record in dismantling organised drug trafficking networks, arguing that announcing timelines without demonstrable action amounted to empty rhetoric. He also raised questions about previous seizures of large quantities of narcotics and heroin at Adani's port in Gujarat, demanding to know what concrete follow-up action the government had taken. The allegation, levelled without elaboration, was part of a broader attack on what Gandhi described as the Centre's failure to act against major trafficking networks.

Attack on AAP's Punjab Government

Gandhi did not limit his criticism to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led Centre. He turned his fire on Punjab's ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government, accusing Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann of failing to control the drug menace in the state. Gandhi alleged that Punjab was being 'governed through a remote control from Delhi' — a reference to AAP's national leadership — and argued that the state required a government that placed its people's interests first.

He also made personal remarks about Chief Minister Mann during the address, referring to earlier interactions in Parliament and making allegations about Mann's conduct — comments that are likely to sharpen the political exchange between the two parties in the run-up to the state polls.

Wider Issues: Manipur, Unemployment, and Farmers

Beyond the drug question, Gandhi accused the Centre of permitting organised criminal networks to operate with impunity and raised concerns about the law and order situation in Manipur. He also challenged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to participate in an open debate on allegations concerning foreign influence and national interests — a recurring Congress demand that has not yet received a government response.

The rally addressed a cluster of grievances — drug abuse, gangster violence, unemployment, farmers' concerns, and deteriorating law and order — that Congress is positioning as the core issues for Punjab voters. This comes amid a broader Congress effort to rebuild its organisational presence in a state it lost to AAP in the 2022 Assembly elections.

Congress Sets the Stage for 2027

By simultaneously targeting both the BJP-led Centre and the AAP state government, Congress is attempting to occupy a distinct political lane in Punjab — one that holds both the ruling party in Chandigarh and the federal government in New Delhi accountable. The Sangrur rally, with the presence of the party president and the leader of opposition, signals that this is no routine gathering; the national leadership is investing early in Punjab's electoral arithmetic.

Whether the dual-front attack sharpens Congress's appeal or dilutes its message will become clearer as campaign activity intensifies over the coming months before the 2027 Punjab Assembly elections.