AAP enters fifth year of rule in Punjab amid concerns over crime, debt

Four years after AAP stormed into power with a thumping victory in the Punjab Assembly elections, the party’s government is entering its fifth year on Tuesday amid concerns over law and order and ballooning debt.

The attention has turned to its achievements as to its failures. However, the Bhagwant Mann government is getting battle-ready, announcing schemes to meet pre-poll promises. Ruling AAP had swept the 2022 polls by winning 92 of the 117 Assembly seats. The number of its MLAs in the House has now touched 95. It has left no stone unturned to woo women, industrialists and Dalits with sop while law and order and rising public debt continue to cast a shadow over its record.

If the Mukh Mantri Mawan Dhiyan Satkar Yojana, reduction in power tariff and an attractive industrial policy made news in the past a few weeks, so did some of the sensational murders, drug overdose deaths and the state’s ever rising debt.

The monthly stipend plan for women is aimed at consolidating the party’s support among one crore women voters and 34 percent of the Dalit.

The government has offered financial assistance of Rs 1,000 per month to women belonging to the general category and Rs 1,500 per month to Dalit women. The Progressive Punjab Investors’ Summit, scheduled for later this week, is meant to boost industry and investor confidence in the border state. The AAP government is hoping to fund its populist welfare programmes with investment generated through the summit.

Having initially and rather unsuccessfully trying to dabble into Panthic affairs (through raising the issue of 328 “missing” saroops), AAP quickly shifted its focus on popularising their model of governance, including setting up of Aam Aadmi Clinics and creating a university and better school infrastructure. However, ruling AAP is finding it difficult to deal with two major concerns — law and order and easing state debt — which has crossed Rs 4 lakh crore.

While campaigns against drugs and gangster activities have created a buzz, these have not had the desired results so far.

On the other hand, the Budget proposals tabled in the Assembly have only exposed the rising debt amidst a reliance on giving doles without imposing any new taxes.

The ruling party has still not addressed farmers’ concerns, and have rather been on a confrontational mode with them.

Ruling AAP may also struggle to keep its flock together, especially after issues related to four of its MLAs — H S Pathanmajra, Amit Rattan Kotfatta, Raman Arora and Kunwar Vijay Pratap — remain unresolved.