Amrinder Singh Raja Warring

Amarinder Singh Brar
President of Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee
Incumbent
Assumed office
9 April 2022
Preceded byNavjot Singh Sidhu
Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha
Incumbent
Assumed office
4 June 2024
Preceded byRavneet Singh Bittu
ConstituencyLudhiana
Minister of Transport, Punjab
In office
20 September 2021 – 10 March 2022
Preceded byRazia Sultana
Succeeded byLaljit Bhullar
Member of the Punjab Legislative Assembly
In office
March 2012 – June 2024
Preceded byManpreet Singh Badal
Succeeded byHardeep Singh Dhillon
ConstituencyGidderbaha
Personal details
Born (1977-11-29) 29 November 1977
Sri Muktsar Sahib, Punjab, India
PartyIndian National Congress
SpouseAmrita Singh
Children2
EducationMatriculation (PSEB)

Amarinder Singh Brar (born 29 November 1977)[1] also known as Amarinder Singh Raja Warring, or Raja Warring, is an Indian politician and a member of the Indian National Congress.[2] He serves as a Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha representing Ludhiana and as president of the Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee.[3] Having won three consecutive terms as Member of the Legislative Assembly from Gidderbaha between 2012 and 2024, he is widely regarded as one of Congress's most prominent leaders in Punjab. Born in Malwa, he lost both his parents in childhood and was raised by his maternal uncles, before entering politics through the Indian Youth Congress, of which he served as national president from 2014 to 2018.

Political career

Warring was the president of the Indian Youth Congress, the youth division of Indian National Congress, from December 2014 to May 2018.[4]

MLA: First term

Warring was elected as a Member of Legislative Assembly from Gidderbaha from 2012–2017,[4] district Sri Muktsar Sahib, Punjab to the Punjab Legislative Assembly.[4][5]

MLA: Second term

In March 2017, he was re-elected as an MLA[4] for the second successive time, after completing his first term from 2012–2017.[6] He served as the Transport Minister in the Punjab government.[7]

Warring contested from Bathinda constituency in the 2019 Indian general election against Harsimrat Kaur Badal but lost the elections by over 20,000 votes.[8]

MLA: Third term

Warring was re-elected for the third cosequtive time as the MLA from the same constituancy during the 2022 Punjab Legislative Assembly election.[7] In April 2022, Warring was appointed by the national leadership of Congress as the chief of Congress in Punjab.[9] As PPCC president, Warring led several high-profile campaigns. In March 2025, he led a protest march to the Punjab Vidhan Sabha demanding that the AAP government fulfil its 2022 election promise of providing ₹1,000 monthly financial assistance to all women of the state. The protesters were met with police water cannons and Warring was detained.[10] In April 2026, he announced that Congress would field women candidates on 33 per cent of seats in the 2027 Punjab Assembly elections.[11] Also in April 2026, he filed a Public Interest Litigation in the Punjab and Haryana High Court seeking a ban on the web series Lawrence of Punjab, arguing that it glorified gangster culture.[12]

MP: First term

In June, Warring won the 2024 Indian general election from Ludhiana Lok Sabha constituency and was elected as a Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha by defeating his nearest competitor, Ravneet Singh Bittu of the Bharatiya Janata Party by a margin of 20,942 votes.[13]

Family

Born to Kuldeep Singh and Malkeet Kaur, he lost his parents when he was still a child, and was brought up by his maternal uncles.[14] He is married to Amrita Singh, and he has a son and a daughter. She is a INC candidate in the upcoming state by-polls.[15] He was earlier known as Raja Sotha, with Sotha being the name of his maternal village. Later, he began using the name of his paternal village called Warring.

Controversies

In June 2022, the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) sought a Central Bureau of Investigation inquiry into bus-body procurement undertaken during Warring’s tenure as Punjab transport minister. The party alleged, citing information obtained through Right to Information requests, that contracts awarded to a Jaipur-based firm were costlier than locally available alternatives and had caused losses to the state exchequer. The allegations were reported by The Statesman and The Times of India.[16][17]

In September 2023, media reports said that Punjab’s Vigilance Bureau was examining alleged irregularities connected with Warring’s tenure as transport minister, including matters relating to bus-body procurement and route permits. Separately, Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann publicly accused Warring of wrongdoing during his tenure.[18][19]

Controversy over remarks toward the Mazhabi Sikh community

In November 2025, Punjab Congress president Amarinder Singh Raja Warring faced criticism and legal action over remarks he made about the late Union Home Minister Buta Singh, who belonged to the Mazhabi Sikh community. A complaint was filed by Buta Singh’s son alleging that Warring used terms such as “Kala Mazhabi Sikh” (“Black Mazhabi Sikh”) in a derogatory context during a campaign speech, which the complainant characterised as offensive, casteist, and defamatory toward both the former minister and the broader Scheduled Caste community. An FIR was registered under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act and other sections of the Indian Penal Code.[20] Warring later issued an unconditional apology for any hurt caused by his remarks. Rival political parties and organisations, including the Shiromani Akali Dal and Aam Aadmi Party, criticised the remarks and demanded action, while the Punjab State Scheduled Castes Commission took notice and sought responses from election officials. Allegations included that the language used could insult and harm the dignity of the Mazhabi Sikh community.[21][22]

Controversy over alleged “neck-twisting” remark

During a period of heightened political tension in Punjab, Amrinder Singh Raja Warring, president of the Punjab unit of the Indian National Congress, was accused by political opponents of making a veiled threat against a Dalit minister. The allegation centred on his use of a phrase translated by critics as “twisting his neck” during a public exchange. Opposition parties and some community organisations criticised the remark as inappropriate and potentially intimidating, particularly because it was directed at a minister belonging to a Scheduled Caste community. They argued that such language could be interpreted as threatening and insensitive in the state’s caste-sensitive political environment.[23]

References

  1. ↑ Cite error: The named reference pan2 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ↑ Cite error: The named reference ht2021 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ↑ Cite error: The named reference toi2024 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. 1 2 3 4 Dhaliwal, Shub Karman. "Punjab Elections Results 2017: Panjab University alumni script success story, win Assembly poll". The Indian Express. Retrieved 19 March 2017.
  5. ↑ India Today (13 July 2024). "Ex-legislators | In the major league now". Archived from the original on 6 August 2024. Retrieved 6 August 2024.
  6. ↑ Kamali, Neel (18 August 2016). "Sukhbir's bid to regain Gidderbaha back for SAD". The Times of India. TNN. Retrieved 19 March 2017.
  7. 1 2 "In Muktsar, novel ways to reach out to voters". Tribuneindia News Service. Retrieved 14 March 2022.
  8. ↑ "Bathinda Elections 2019: Punjab Lok Sabha Constituency Poll Dates, Parliamentary Election, Candidates, Schedule, Latest News | Opinion Poll, Exit Poll, 2014 Election Results and Survey Online". Firstpost. Retrieved 12 July 2023.
  9. ↑ "Punjab Congress appointments: High command tries to maintain region, experience and caste balance". Tribuneindia News Service. 9 April 2022. Retrieved 12 April 2022.
  10. ↑ "Punjab Congress protest over AAP Promise of Rs 1,100 to women, Raja Warring Detained". Rozana Spokesman. 21 March 2025.
  11. ↑ "Congress to field women on 33% of Assembly seats, says Raja Warring". Tribune India. 21 April 2026.
  12. ↑ "Raja Warring moves High Court against Lawrence of Punjab series". Babushahi. 22 April 2026.
  13. ↑ The Economic Times (6 June 2024). "Bullish Wins & Bearish Losses: Here are the key contests and results of 2024 Lok Sabha polls". Archived from the original on 27 July 2024. Retrieved 27 July 2024.
  14. ↑ Service, Tribune News. "Slip of the tongue". Tribuneindia News Service. Retrieved 9 February 2020.
  15. ↑ "Members". punjabassembly.nic.in. Retrieved 9 February 2020.
  16. ↑ "SAD demands CBI probe into alleged Rs 60-Cr scam by Raja Warring". The Statesman. 24 June 2022. Retrieved 7 September 2025.
  17. ↑ "Let CBI investigate 60cr bus purchase 'scam' by Warring, says Akali Dal". The Times of India. 25 June 2022. Retrieved 7 September 2025.
  18. ↑ Thaper, Amanat (14 September 2023). "Vigilance Probe Launched into Alleged Irregularities Involving Punjab Congress Chief Raja Warring". Rozana Spokesman. Retrieved 7 September 2025.
  19. ↑ "Warring made money as transport min: CM". The Times of India. 10 September 2023. Retrieved 7 September 2025.
  20. ↑ "FIR against Punjab Congress chief Warring over caste-based comments on Buta Singh". The Tribune. Retrieved 25 January 2026.
  21. ↑ "'Inflammatory & defamatory': Badal slams casteist remarks against Mazhabi community by Punjab Congress president Amarinder Singh Raja Warring". The Times of India. 4 November 2025. Retrieved 25 January 2026.
  22. ↑ Mahajan, Anilesh S. (8 November 2025). "Why Raja Warring's Buta Singh row is Congress's Punjab bypoll headache". India Today. Retrieved 25 January 2026.
  23. ↑ "Anti-Dalit mindset: AAP slams Congress leaders' remarks on Punjab Cabinet minister". India Today. 9 February 2026. Retrieved 13 February 2026.
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