The Congress high command’s newly appointed three-member team of observers for Punjab — in the run-up to the Assembly elections likely in November — comprising Ajay Maken, Meenakshi Natarajan and Bhajan Lal Jatav is scheduled to begin one-to-one interactions with Punjab Congress leaders in Delhi tomorrow.But the move has triggered an unease within Punjab Congress circles over the decision to entrust the key Punjab assessment exercise to three confidants of Rahul Gandhi who either know little about Punjab politics or have lost several elections themselves.Critics are particularly vocal about the inclusion of leaders like Ajay Maken, who has faced repeated electoral setbacks and is seen by some as an electorally “defunct” leader. Otherwise serving as the AICC Treasurer, a strategic position he holds as a staunch loyalist to Rahul Gandhi, Maken electoral graph has seen downslide since 2015. From the downfall of the Delhi unit to him losing in the Rajya Sabha contest from Haryana in 2022, the former Delhi Congress in-charge has retained his position in the Central Working Committee (CWC).Similar murmurs in party circles are being heard about the other two members, Meenakshi Natarajan, whose nomination for Rajya Sabha seat from Madhya Pradesh was recently rejected, and Bhajan Lal Jatav, MP from Rajasthan. Both members’ understanding about Punjab’s complex caste and regional politics is being questioned in party circles.A senior Congress leader, speaking on condition of anonymity, said: “When the party is looking to revive its fortunes in Punjab, sending leaders who have little recent success on the ground raises doubts about the seriousness of the exercise.”In September 2021, while removing Capt Amarinder Singh as the Chief Minister and appointing Charanjit Channi as the interim CM, the party high command had then sent three observers — Ajay Maken, Harish Chaudhary and the then Punjab affairs in-charge and former Uttarakhand CM Harish Rawat. The Congress was reduced to 18 seats in the 2022 Assembly elections.Sources said the observers’ feedback is part of a larger effort to assess the ground situation in Punjab and to submit a detailed report to the high command. Party sources said the team would hold individual meetings with senior leaders, district presidents and other functionaries to gauge internal issues and the state unit’s preparedness for the coming Assembly poll. The report is expected within a week and could shape future decisions on leadership and strategy in the border state.The observers are meeting Punjab leaders weeks after Kharge and Rahul Gandhi have thrice heard leaders from the state over the past few months. Punjab Congress has been plagued by persistent factionalism with groups aligned to PPCC chief Amarinder Singh Raja Warring, Leader of Opposition Partap Singh Bajwa and former CM Charanjit Singh Channi often pulling in different directions.