Dramatic scenes unfolded in the Punjab assembly on Friday as legislators of the ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and opposition Congress stormed the well of the House amid Opposition's demand of an alcohol test on chief minister Bhagwant Mann. The House that reconvened after lunch break was adjourned as Congress MLAs demanded a breath analyser test on Mann, while the AAP MLAs retaliated with slogans. Track updates on Assembly elections 2026
The Speaker also rejected the opposition's demand for an ‘immediate’ dope test on chief minister Mann and all MLAs during the ongoing special session of the Punjab assembly. Earlier, Leader of the Opposition Partap Singh Bajwa had raised concerns on Mann's ‘conduct’ and had written to the Speaker.
What Bajwa said in the letter
Bajwa, in a letter to the Speaker of the House, mentioned an 'incident' in the Assembly, without giving details about it, but termed it “deeply troubling". “If left unaddressed, risks undermining public trust in this esteemed institution,” Bajwa said.
“An incident that occurred today during the ongoing session, as raised by MLA Sukhpal Singh Khaira, has brought forth serious concerns regarding the conduct of the Hon’ble Chief Minister. The Hon’ble Chief Minister left the House without replying to allegations made by the Member,” Bajwa said in the letter.
{{/usCountry}}“An incident that occurred today during the ongoing session, as raised by MLA Sukhpal Singh Khaira, has brought forth serious concerns regarding the conduct of the Hon’ble Chief Minister. The Hon’ble Chief Minister left the House without replying to allegations made by the Member,” Bajwa said in the letter.
{{/usCountry}}Seeking urgent intervention, Bajwa demanded a ‘comprehensive dope testing' of all MLAs ‘without exception’.
AAP dismisses Congress allegations
Rejecting the allegations and ‘concerns’ raised by the opposition Congress, the ruling AAP accused it of making ‘baseless and frivolous remarks'.
“The Congress has been making baseless and frivolous remarks, which is unfortunate and amounts to adding salt to the wounds of workers and undermining the dignity of the House." Punjab AAP chief and cabinet minister Aman Arora told PTI news agency.
'No floor test if breath analyser is done'
Joining the chorus for breath analyser and alcohol test was the Punjab BJP whose chief Sunil Jakhar called for tests for all legislators present in the state Assembly.
"If the government comes to the Assembly in an inebriated state, I believe it's not only an insult to Babasaheb Ambedkar's Constitution, but also an insult to the temple of democracy," Jakhar said.
“The Punjab Assembly is considered the temple of democracy. If someone enters a temple or gurudwara under the influence of alcohol, it's contempt and disrespect. Whether CM Bhagwant Maan goes for a floor test today or not...I have one request - given the importance of today's special session, all leaders should definitely undergo a breath analyser test...If the breath analyser test of all leaders is done, then there will be no need for a floor test,” Jhakar was quoted as saying by PTI.
BJP leader Vijay Sampla told ANI, "We are holding a people's assembly, whereas the state government is holding a session that they claim is dedicated to the labourers of the country. However, in the last four years, there have been no government schemes for them. This is a mockery...they are just doing a floor test, so that they can rest for six months, but that won't work...BJP's session will highlight the real issues that the government needs to work upon...."
Meanwhile, AAP leader Baltej Pannu said, "BJP doesn't have MLAs, what will they do anyway inside the Assembly? So they have set up a fake one...Congress has nothing to do with labourers or Labour Day...Punjab is the safest state right now. What's happening in Manipur? What is the law and order situation in Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh?
‘CM of a sensitive border state’
Rajya Sabha MP Swati Maliwal launched a sharp attack on Mann as she accused him of appearing in the assembly ‘drunk’.
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“This man goes to the Gurdwara Sahib after drinking, goes to the temple after drinking, used to come to the Lok Sabha after drinking, goes to government meetings after drinking, and drank so much abroad that he was deplaned,” Maliwal alleged.
Maliwal was among seven Rajya Sabha MPs who exited AAP last week as part of a coordinated breakaway led by Raghav Chadha Nearly two years after her public fallout with Arvind Kejriwal and the AAP, Maliwal formally aligned with the BJP.
Shiromani Akali Dal's Sukhbir Singh Badal also slammed Mann and questioned his conduct in the House and said, “This is a serious breach of decorum in the Temple of Democracy and a grave insult to the people of Punjab who elected him.”
Punjab Assembly passes Confidence Motion
Amid acrimonious scenes, Mann-led AAP government passed the Confidence Motion in the Assembly while the Opposition Congress and Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) were not present in the House as they had staged a walk out earlier.
Chaos in Punjab assembly
The House witnessed chaotic scenes as heated exchanges took place on between Mann and Congress MLA Sukhpal Singh Khaira after the former claimed that the opposition legislator was using a mobile phone in the house, PTI reported.
Mann, during the one-day special session of the Punjab Vidhan Sabha, objected to the alleged use of mobile phone by Khaira when Speaker Kultar Singh Sandhwan was reading out an official resolution on the revision of wages.
Mann rose from his seat and pointed to the speaker, claiming that Khaira is busy on his mobile phone and urged him to ask the Congress MLA what Sandhwan had said about the resolution.
On Mann's claims, the speaker asked the Congress MLA to maintain order in the house and listen to the resolution carefully.
Mann then asked Khaira, "Why don't you go out and then use it (mobile phone)," leading to a sharp verbal reaction from the Bholath MLA. Meanwhile, the speaker appealed for order and insisted that the chair be addressed.
Both Mann and Khaira continued the verbal altercation and could be seen pointing fingers at each other as the proceedings of the house were disrupted.