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Main Punjab Boldaa Haan: CM Bhagwant Mann sets ground rules for November 1 debate
Chief minister Bhagwant Mann had on October 8 dared top leaders of the opposition Congress, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) for an open debate
Chief minister Bhagwant Mann on Thursday announced that the open debate on issues pertaining to Punjab scheduled to be held in Ludhiana on November 1 will be called ‘Main Punjab Bolda Haan’.
Laying down the ground rules for the debate, Mann, in a post on X (formerly Twitter), said each party will get 30 minutes to present their case. “Prof Nirmal Jaura will be the moderator. People will seek answers from the parties which have been in power in the state,” he wrote, extending an open invitation to all Punjabis for the event.
Mann had on October 8 dared top leaders of the opposition Congress, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) for an open debate. The challenge was thrown by Mann to Punjab BJP president Sunil Jakhar, Punjab Congress president Amarinder Singh Raja Warring and Partap Singh Bajwa (both from Congress), and SAD chief Sukhbir Badal amid opposition parties’ criticism of his government over the Sutlej Yamuna Link (SYL) canal issue. Jakhar has agreed to participate in the debate after having raised questions over the manner in which it was being planned and suggested a three-member panel to oversee it. Congress and SAD leaders initially accepted the challenge but set their separate terms for the debate. Later on October 10, SAD announced that it will boycott the debate.
Senior SAD leader Prem Singh Chandumajra termed it a ‘sham debate’ to divide Punjabis on the orders of Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) convener Arvind Kejriwal and said the party will not be part of this ‘anti-Punjab exercise’.
