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Central service rules to UT staff: SAD urges CM Bhagwant Mann to call all-party meet
SAD urged CM Bhagwant Mann to make centre understand that Chandigarh is a UT as per an ad hoc arrangement only
The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) on Monday urged chief minister Bhagwant Mann to call an all-party meeting for approaching the central government to stop its efforts to make Chandigarh a permanent union territory in violation of the Punjab Reorganisation Act.
Reacting sharply to the Sunday’s announcement by union home minister Amit Shah to bring Chandigarh employees under central civil service rules, the SAD said, “It is incumbent on the AAP government to make the centre understand that Chandigarh is a union territory as per an ad hoc arrangement only”.
The matter came up for discussion by the party’s 16-member committee, constituted last week for poll loss introspection.
Senior leaders, including Prem Singh Chandumajra, Charanjit Singh Atwal, Maheshinder Singh Grewal, Gulzar Singh Ranike, Daljit Singh Cheema and Hira Singh Gabria called on the CM to come true to his responsibility towards the state.
They noted that he did not take up the issue of dilution of Punjab’s stakes in the Bhakra Beas Management Board (BBMB) during his recent meeting with the Prime Minister.
“In case, the CM had registered a protest on the matter, the centre would have desisted from going ahead with the move to extend central rules on Chandigarh employees,” said the SAD committee leaders, adding that Mann did not take up the issue with the Prime Minister due to fear of being reprimand by AAP convener Arvind Kejriwal.
According to the former MP, the decision to extend central civil service rules to Chandigarh employees was not only a violation of the Punjab Reorganisation Act but also that of the Rajiv Gandhi-Sant Harchand Singh Longowal accord and subsequent commissions which had held that Punjab had a majority share in the Chandigarh administration and that the status of the union territory was ad hoc pending transfer to Punjab.
Meanwhile, Daljit Singh Cheema highlighted how extending central rules would further marginalise Punjabi language.
In a reply to a query, the SAD leaders also demanded that the Punjab government should cut VAT on petroleum products immediately to relief to the common man.
