Punjab budget session from today, likely to be stormy affair

The session, which comes with just days to go for the announcement of the April-May Lok Sabha polls by the Election Commission, is expected to see the opposition parties and the ruling AAP go after each other to set the stage for the crucial electoral battle.

The budget session of the Punjab Vidhan Sabha starting Friday is likely to be stormy with opposition parties gearing up to target the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government over the ongoing farmers’ protest, law and order and rising debt.

The session, which comes with just days to go for the announcement of the April-May Lok Sabha polls by the Election Commission, is expected to see the opposition parties and the ruling AAP go after each other to set the stage for the crucial electoral battle.

The session, which comes with just days to go for the announcement of the April-May Lok Sabha polls by the Election Commission, is expected to see the opposition parties and the ruling AAP go after each other to set the stage for the crucial electoral battle.

Leaders of the opposition parties, particularly the Congress and Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), have been attacking the state government over its handling of the farmer stir, failure to act against the Haryana police action on Punjab farmers and suspension of mobile internet services by the central government in several districts of the state.

Though the state authorities ended the stalemate with the farmer unions over the autopsy of Shubh Karan Singh, who had died in police action at Khanauri, by registering an FIR on Wednesday night, leader of opposition Partap Singh Bajwa and Punjab Congress chief Amarinder Singh Raja Warring expressed dissatisfaction that it was registered against unknown police officials, and may raise the issue in the state assembly. The opposition parties also plan to raise the pitch on law and order, an old pension scheme for government employees and rising debt.

Chief minister Bhagwant Mann, on the other hand, set the tone of the ruling party’s likely line of attack by holding a press conference at his official residence to accuse the Badal family, including Shiromani Akali Dal president Sukhbir Singh Badal, of misuse of power during the Akali government for setting up their company-owned luxury hotel in Pallanpur village of Mohali district and allowing it tax wavier running into crores of rupees. The treasury benches are also preparing to highlight their government’s welfare schemes and achievements such as 300 units of free power to domestic category consumers, doorstep ration delivery scheme, health clinics, up-gradation of infrastructure in government schools, and purchase of a power plant from a private firm.

15-day session to begin with guv’s address

The budget session will begin on Friday with the governor’s customary address to be followed by a motion of thanks and discussion on it on March 4, according to the schedule released by the Punjab Vidhan Sabha secretariat. Finance minister Harpal Singh Cheema will present his budgetary proposals for the financial year 2024-25 on March 5. The general discussion on budget estimates will take place on March 6. Legislative business will be taken up on March 11, 12 and 15, whereas three days have been kept for non-official business.