Bajwa Slams Government Over Illegal Mining, Reminds of Pre-Poll Promise
The Punjab Vidhan Sabha witnessed sharp political exchanges on Monday as legislators from the ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and the Opposition Congress clashed outside the House while maintaining decorum during proceedings.
With Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann absent on the first day of the two-day Assembly session, Punjab Cabinet Minister Aman Arora led the treasury benches. Congress legislators, led by Leader of the Opposition Partap Singh Bajwa, had earlier vowed to raise issues of corruption, law and order, and the state's deteriorating financial health. However, these matters were not discussed in the House.
Bajwa took a direct swipe at the AAP government over illegal mining, alleging that a close relative of an AAP minister was operating an illegal stone crusher. He also reminded the ruling party of its pre-election promise to generate ₹20,000 crore in tax revenue by eliminating illegal quarrying.
Outside the Assembly, Bajwa stirred controversy by claiming that 32 AAP MLAs were in touch with him and considering switching sides. Congress MLA Pargat Singh further speculated that the short two-day session indicated potential instability in AAP’s leadership. "It seems they are ready to change their Chief Minister," he remarked.
Aman Arora swiftly responded on social media, alleging that Bajwa was preparing to join the BJP and had held secret meetings in Bengaluru. He accused Bajwa of betraying the mandate and acting on a script dictated by the BJP, referring to his brother's recent switch to the saffron party.
"Bajwa is spreading baseless rumors and making frivolous statements. He lost Sandeep Jakhar to the BJP, yet he talks about destabilizing our government," Arora said.
During a brief adjournment after obituary references, Arora and Finance Minister Harpal Cheema held a closed-door meeting with AAP MLAs to strategize their response to the Opposition's attacks.
Opposition Raises Civic Infrastructure Concerns
Opposition MLAs also brought up civic issues, highlighting inadequate infrastructure in health, education, and urban amenities. BJP MLA Ashwani Sharma pointed out that around 10,000 non-residents had settled in Pathankot, a border town, while SAD MLA Manpreet Singh Ayali and Congress legislator Sukhwinder Singh Kotli demanded that local consent be made mandatory before establishing compressed biogas plants.
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