Who is Pargat Singh, the former Olympic hockey captain who just replaced Warring as Punjab Congress president?

By The Hindu Staff

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Who is Pargat Singh, the former Olympic hockey captain who just replaced Warring as Punjab Congress president? — Photo credit: The Hindu

Former Minister Pargat Singh was on Friday (October 2, 2026) appointed as the Punjab Congress president, replacing Ludhiana MP Amrinder Singh Raja Warring ahead of the Assembly elections due in 2027. The 61-year-old former captain of Indian men’s hockey team is a three-time MLA from the Jalandhar Cantonment.

Mr. Singh’s journey from the hockey turf to the helm of the Punjab Congress is one of the rare sports-to-politics transitions, putting the former Olympian at the forefront of State politics. Here’s a look at Pargat Singh’s journey from the sporting arena to political corridors, and why he replaced Mr. Warring as the Punjab Congress president.

Pargat Singh: Former Indian hockey captain

Pargat Singh was born in March 1965 in Mithapur in Punjab’s Jalandhar. Mr. Singh, who captained the national hockey team, represented India in the 1992 Barcelona and 1996 Atlanta Olympics.

A full-back, Mr. Singh was widely known as one of India’s best defenders of his era in hockey. For his contributions to Indian hockey, he was honoured with the Arjuna Award in 1989 and the Padma Shri in 1998.

After retiring from international hockey, Mr. Singh served as director of sport and Superintendent of Police in Punjab, before entering electoral politics.

Pargat Singh’s political journey

Originally published by The Hindu on Oct 3, 2026 Read the full article at thehindu.com

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