SC leaders meet Rahul, thank him for Channi's appointment as Punjab CM

A group of politicians hailing from the Scheduled Caste community met Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday and thanked him for the elevation of Charanjit Singh Channi, a Dalit, as the chief minister of Punjab.

Channi is the first from the Scheduled Caste (SC) community to hold the post in the state.

He succeeded Amarinder Singh who quit after alleging that he was humiliated by his party.

Gandhi shared pictures of the meeting on Facebook and said, ''Had an interesting discussion with leaders from the Dalit community this morning.'' ''Come rain or shine, we will stay true to our resolve for equal opportunities for all sections of the society. Jai Hind,'' he said.

The Congress has claimed that the decision to appoint a Dalit the chief minister of Punjab is historic and seeks to gain support of the community in the assembly elections slated for early next year.

An estimated 30 per cent of the state's population, counting both Sikhs and Hindus, is from the SC community.