Punjab Opposition slams move to replace CM with Chief Secy in urban bodies

The state Opposition parties on Sunday slammed the AAP government’s proposal to replace the Chief Minister with the Chief Secretary as the chairperson of all urban development authorities.

The parties termed it a bid to undermine the Chief Minister’s authority by allowing Delhi leaders led by AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal to run the show while reducing CM Bhagwant Mann to “mere puppet CM”.

Kejriwal calling shots

This is not a policy decision, it is a hostile takeover. The governemnt is being run directly by Kejriwal and his handpicked people. Partap Singh Bajwa, LoP

CM ultimate decider

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While the Chief Secretary will approve proposals, the final nod will rest with PUDA and the Cabinet headed by CM Mann. Aman Arora, Minister

Reduced to a puppet show?

Will the CM and his Cabinet now report to a bureaucrat? Has the Cabinet been reduced to a puppet show run by Kejriwal’s inner circle? Tarun Chugh, BJP

However, the ruling party defended the decision, with Minister Aman Arora saying it would help speed up development works.

The decision was taken by the state Cabinet on Saturday. An amendment has to be made in the Punjab Regional and Town Planning and Development Board (PRTPD) Act to implement it.

The board has powers related to the planning, development and use of urban and rural land in Punjab.

These powers include advising the state government, preparing and implementing development plans, undertaking execution of development projects, formulating urban land use policies, and promoting research and development in urban planning and development.

The move has come weeks after the government rolled out its ambitious land pooling policy, with the government claiming that is would benefit farmers and landowners who would get plots of higher value than the cost of actual land.

The policy has been rolled out for 27 urban centres. Townships will be developed near several cities, including Ludhiana, where over 24,000 acres of agriculture land is expected to be acquire for the purpose.

However, the Leader of the Opposition in the state Assembly, Partap Singh Bajwa, accused Kejriwal of reducing CM Bhagwant Mann to “mere puppet”. He said it showed that Mann no longer called the shots in Punjab.

“This is not a policy decision, it is a hostile takeover. The governemnt in Punjab is being run directly by Kejriwal and his handpicked persons,” Bajwa claimed.

“What is the urgency to replace the CM with the Chief Secretary at this moment? What agenda the government wants to pass in the board meeting?” state Congress chief Amrinder Raja Warring sought to know.

He described it as an attempt to “undermine” the CM’s authority. “After all, he is the elected head of the government, chosen by the people of Punjab, while the Chief Secretary is only an appointed official by the CM,” he said.

Shiromani Akali Dal spokesperson Daljit Cheema said the decision was “illegal, unconstitutional and arbitrary”. “As per a 1995 Act, the CM and Housing Minister are chairperson and vice-chairperson. Making the Chief Secretary the head of a body where Cabinet Ministers are ex-officio members undermines their authority,” he said.

BJP national general secretary Tarun Chugh called the move a “blatant bureaucratic coup executed to hand over Punjab’s assets to Kejriwal’s coterie.”

Chugh said the move was an “open assault” on democratic governance and an insult to Punjab’s elected leadership.

“Will Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann and his cabinet now report to a bureaucrat? Has Punjab’s cabinet been reduced to a puppet show run by Kejriwal’s inner circle?” he questioned.

Meanwhile, Cabinet Minister and Punjab AAP chief Aman Arora clarified that the step had been taken “solely to eliminate delays in development works”.

“While the Chief Secretary will approve proposals, the final approval will still rest with the Punjab Urban Development Authority and the Cabinet. Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann is the chairman of PUDA and head of the Cabinet, so the ultimate decision will be his. How is his authority being undermined?” he questioned.