Now, AAP govt in Punjab calls special session to prove majority

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Chandigarh, September 19

Days after the Aam Aadmi Party accused the BJP of trying to topple its government in Punjab, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann today said a special session of the state Assembly would be called on September 22 to present a confidence motion.

The ruling party had recently claimed that at least 10 of its MLAs were approached by the BJP with an offer of Rs 25 crore each to topple the six-month-old government.

“Punjab voters ensured a thumping majority to our party, but some anti-democratic forces have been trying to lure our MLAs with money to topple out government. We have decided to bring about a confidence motion to prove we still enjoy the faith of the people,” the CM said. With 92 MLAs, the AAP has an overwhelming majority in the 117-member Punjab Assembly. The Congress has 18 MLAs, Akali Dal three, BJP two and the BSP one while one is Independent.

Maintaining that AAP MLAs were committed to the ideology of the party, Mann claimed that after Delhi, attempts to destabilise the AAP government had failed in Punjab. “Anti-Punjab forces should stop daydreaming about toppling a government that won with a brute majority,” he said.

CM mulls restoring old pension scheme

CM Bhagwant Mann has said his government is considering restoring the old pension scheme (OPS) for government employees. Discontinued in 2004, restoring OPS has been a long pending demand of state employees.