Raising eyebrows in political circles, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann has constituted an advisory body to assist the Punjab government in “matters of public importance relating to public administration”.
A letter issued by Chief Secretary, Vijay Kumar Janjua said: “The Chief Minister has reviewed the functioning of the Government at various levels and is of the view that a body (temporary in nature) is required to advise Punjab. Government in matters of public importance relating to public administration. ,
The Committee shall consist of a Chairperson and other members, if any, as may be appointed by the Government from time to time. The committee is constituted on an ad-hoc and temporary basis.
However, the letter states that the office of the Chairperson and the members, if any, shall not be entitled to any compensation, remuneration, or allowances of any kind or nomenclature in respect of such appointment. The Chairperson and Members shall also not be entitled to any compensation including payments of compensatory nature.
Although the government is yet to announce the name of the chairman or members, but a name in the name of senior Aam Aadmi Party leader and Punjab in-charge Raghav Chadha is in the news.
Sources said Chadha was at the forefront of the party’s campaign during the state assembly elections and is also considered close to party convener and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal. One leader remarked, “He may be the right person because he knows the situation on the ground.”
But the constitution of the advisory body has already given rise to a controversy. Even though Mann has been targeted by the opposition for taking important decisions on Kejriwal’s “gestures”, the advisory body and possible appointment of Chadha have given him fresh ammunition to target the Punjab government.
Reacting to the decision, Punjab Congress president Amarinder Singh Raja Warring questioned the legality of the proposed ‘consultative committee’, headed by a president, who may eventually end up as the de facto chief minister of the state.
In a statement, Waring said: “This amounts to creating an extra-constitutional authority without accountability that would undermine the constitutional mandate of an elected government and its cabinet. In the past, governments have established advisory committees, but These were specific and with a limited duration and purpose and did not have wide-ranging controls and powers like those proposed to be set up by the government.
“If an ad-hoc advisory committee has to be appointed, what is the cabinet for? Or AAP wants to outsource governance,” he said, adding that there is a strong apprehension among the people that the elected government will be made subordinate and subordinate to the proposed advisory committee, which may not be acceptable in a constitutional democracy.
Leader of Opposition Partap Singh Bajwa said, “The government, through its notification, has decided to constitute a temporary body to advise the government on matters of public importance in public administration.”
In other words, the Chief Minister of Punjab, Bhagwant Singh Mann, would appoint Raghav Chadha as the Regent of Punjab. This is a direct reflection of the inability of the Chief Minister to protect the interests of every Punjabi. In a roundabout way, the AAP government in Delhi now has a legitimate way to take control of the governance of the state, further cementing the image that the honorable Chief Minister of Punjab is now a puppet of the Delhi Chief Minister’s submission. ,
“This pattern of the Punjab government to hand over governance to AAP Delhi first began with the Knowledge Sharing Agreement signed with the Delhi government on April 26, 2022, in direct contravention of the constitutional provisions. Congress had led a delegation to the governor and submitted a memorandum outlining the issues with the agreement. Next comes the present issue, which authorizes entry into Chandigarh through the back door of the Delhi government. I strongly oppose this decision and will seek the intervention of the Governor to work against this notification in the interest of Punjab.
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