The All-India Congress Committee (AICC) has appointed Gurpreet Singh Lucky Pakhoke as the chief of the party’s SC wing in the state, a crucial organisational reshuffle ahead of the Assembly poll early next year.Pakhoke (41) replaced former MLA Kuldeep Singh Vaid. Party sources said former minister Raj Kumar Verka and Adampur MLA Sukhwinder Singh Kotli were also in contention but the leadership opted to bet on a younger leader.The move is being seen as part of Rahul Gandhi’s push to appoint young and hardworking leaders on key posts. The appointment assumes significance as the AICC has decided that chairpersons of the state’s SC and OBC wings will serve as ex-officio members of the state election committee, which plays a key role in shortlisting candidates for the Assembly elections.In addition, Yamini Gomar and Vaneshwar Khera have been appointed as the working chairpersons of the SC wing. Senior party leaders said their names were finalised based on inputs from AICC co-in-charges for Punjab — Ravinder Dalvi, Suraj Thakur and Heena Kaware.Party insiders said the elevation of Pakhoke, a grandson of former MLA Sant Singh Pakhoke, underlined the Congress strategy to build a second line of SC leadership in Punjab.Yamini Gautam, who recently joined the Congress after leaving AAP had unsuccessfully contested the 2024 Lok Sabha poll from Hoshiarpur.Khera, a Youth Congress leader, hails from Nabha in Patiala. As part of the restructuring, a state advisory council of the SC wing has also been constituted, with Pakhoke as its convener. The council includes MPs Charanjit Singh Channi, Amar Singh and Sher Singh Ghubaya, and MLAs Aruna Chaudhary, Sukhwinder Kotli, Balwinder Singh Dhaliwal and Vikramjeet Singh Chaudhary. According to sources, the reconstitution of the Mahila Congress and OBC wing was also on the cards.