From being elected president of a municipal council to being handpicked as first Dalit chief minister of Punjab, Charanjit Singh Channi has seen a meteoric rise in the last two decades. His political journey began with being elected as the president of the Kharar municipal council in 2002. He first contested as an Independent in 2007 and won from Chamkaur Sahib Assembly constituency. During his ministerial tenure, Channi was at the centre of a row after a woman IAS officer had accused him of sending an “inappropriate text” message in 2018.