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Punjab: Bhagwant Mann govt completes 14 months, here’s what it got right

A former stage artist with only 10 years in active politics, Bhagwant Mann’s elevation to rule the state came as a surprise to many.

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Punjab: Bhagwant Mann govt completes 14 months, here's what it got right

The Bhagwant Mann-led Aam Aadmi Party government in Punjab has completed 14 months in office. AAP came to power breaking the state’s five-decades’ tradition alternating between the Congress and the Akalis, becoming the first non-Congress, non-Akali party to form a government in Punjab.

In the 2022 Punjab Assembly elections, AAP won 92 seats of the total 117 seats in the state. The victory was AAP’s first-ever government formation outside Delhi.

The landslide sent out a message that Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s popularity was increasing across the country, which was a point of concern for the national parties.

A former stage artist with only 10 years in active politics, Bhagwant Mann’s elevation to rule the state came as a surprise to many.

After Mann was declared AAP’s chief ministerial candidate, a large group of experts said Kejriwal had made a huge mistake in handling the responsibilities to Mann, who had no background in running an administration.

Political experts used to say, Mann is being handed with a state that has 23 districts, 237 towns, and 12581 villages. But the Punjab CM has come away looking the victor against these doubts of experts. Punjab faces many challenges, the biggest being sharing the border with Pakistan, a channel that is used to smuggle drugs, illegal arms and exports, a big threat for the state and for the country.

As Mann completes 14 months as Chief Minister, he seems to have had a clear thought to change all these narratives that were in the air linked to his name.

Let’s take a look on how Mann and his government has thrived so far

Tough on corruption

CM Mann has made a space for himself among the people and is often tagged as a man who is tough when it comes to acting against corruption.

Clean governance and taking a clear stand against corruption is what his government is known for, especially after the sacking of then Health Minister Vijay Singla, when corruption charges were levelled against him. And it was not just one man shown the door for corruption, another Punjab Minister Fauja Singh Sarari was also forced to resign over graft.

Mann has won wide-spread popularity for his government’s zero-tolerance policy against corruption. From political leaders to senior government officials, no one is spared in his regime even at the assistant inspector general of the police level, people have been sent to jail.

Agriculture

The recent passed budget of the government increased an outlay for crop diversification in the state, which was seen a major step taken in favour of the agriculture sector.

CM Mann also promised to include Moong dal under the Minimum Support Price (MSP) scheme benefiting farmers growing the pulse.

Free Electricity

In just four months after coming to power, the government also fulfilled the manifesto promise of 300 units of free electricity.

Some of the other major decisions that have helped the Punjab governement get a pat on its back was introducing one MLA, one pension scheme, scrapping of load enhancement fee on tubewells, launching Aam Aadmi Clinics (a replica of the Mohalla clinics in Delhi) and such.

Mann re-introduced the old pension scheme scrapped in 2004, under which a retiree is entitled for 50-percent of his last drawn salary, a step that wooed the working government staff and the retired staff across Punjab.

The Mann government has also been decisive on clearing possession of illegally encroached government lands. Reports said the Punjab government has till now freed some 10,000 acres of encroached land.

On Friday, Mann announced another drive against illegal occupation on government encroached lands starting from June 1.

The Mann government is often charged by the opposition for leaving the administrative control of the state in Delhi (read Kejriwal) instead of keeping it in Punjab.

The Bhagwant Mann government’s good performance is crucial for the Aam Aadmi Party to expand its national footprint in the 2024 Lok Sabha Polls. It wants to do well in Punjab for Lok Sabha and the Haryana Assembly elections next year, which the AAP has been eyeing for long and expects a Punjab-like outcome as they are neighbouring states.

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BJP says it stands for credibility of promises under PM Modi, Congress for crisis

Trivedi mockingly questioned whether Kharge was truthful in his statements made the previous day, implying that his critiques of the BJP were a reaction driven by pressure to reconcile his earlier remarks.

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The BJP said on Saturday that it stood for the credibility of promises made under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s leadership, while labeling the Congress party as one suffering from a crisis of credibility, intensifying their ongoing rhetorical conflict over unfulfilled electoral pledges.

BJP spokesperson Sudhanshu Trivedi said that the ruling party has expanded its welfare initiatives, including health insurance, free food grains, and cash transfers to farmers, emphasising a strategy focused on wealth creation followed by equitable distribution as the Indian economy has grown over the last decade.

“We believe in the creation of wealth and its distribution. The Congress fosters corruption and depletes wealth,” he stated, referencing numerous unfulfilled promises made by Congress-led governments across various states.

Following Mallikarjun Kharge’s remark labeling “Modi ki guarantee” as a cruel joke after Modi seized Kharge’s guidance on budgetary constraints in state poll announcements, the BJP launched new accusations.

Trivedi mockingly questioned whether Kharge was truthful in his statements made the previous day, implying that his critiques of the BJP were a reaction driven by pressure to reconcile his earlier remarks.

Trivedi highlighted several accomplishments of the Modi government, including the construction of the Ram temple, the abrogation of Article 370, the building of over 14 crore homes for the impoverished, the establishment of more than 51 crore Jan Dhan accounts, and a firm stance against terrorism from Pakistan, to demonstrate the government’s fulfillment of its commitments.

He noted that Kharge, having witnessed notable leaders like PV Narasimha Rao and Pranab Mukherjee manage economic challenges effectively, is now observing the Congress party struggling under the influence of urban Naxals due to Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi.

Addressing Kharge’s criticisms on various issues, Trivedi pointed to data from the Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) indicating a rise in account holders from 11 crore to 25 crore over the past decade.

He also referenced significant infrastructure projects, such as the construction of homes for the poor, 74 new airports, and an impressive pace of 37 kilometers of road built per day, claiming that these initiatives have created substantial employment opportunities.

“India is now ranked third in auto manufacturing and second in mobile phone manufacturing; if anyone is unable to recognize the country’s progress, there is a profound deficiency in their perspective,” asserted the BJP spokesperson.

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Maharashtra elections: Congress says Mahayuti understands its exit is certain

Congress leader Sachin Pilot, also an observer of the Congress party for the Maharashtra elections, said that the ruling Mahayuti alliance is aware that its exit is imminent.      

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The Congress on Wednesday asserted the ruling Mahayuti government in Maharashtra has understood that its exit is certain as the Maha Vikas Aghadi alliance is strong and that all its candidates are in a strong position for the upcoming Assembly elections in the state.

Congress leader Sachin Pilot, also an observer of the Congress party for the Maharashtra elections, said that the ruling Mahayuti alliance is aware that its exit is imminent.      

The Congress leader stated that the party is fully prepared and that its ally parties in Maharashtra are strong. He mentioned that the seat-sharing negotiations occurred in a positive atmosphere and that the ruling party has recognized that their exit is inevitable.

“All the candidates of the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) are in a strong position. The people here have decided to support Congress and its allies in the upcoming Assembly elections,” he said.

He also noted that the alliance’s performance in the recent Lok Sabha elections was impressive. “Wherever Congress contested, our candidates won 80 percent of the seats. We expect this trend to continue,” he added.

Pilot acknowledged that there have been some differences among party members regarding specific seats but assured that those issues would be resolved in the next 2-3 days, ensuring there would be only one candidate from the MVA for each seat.

Earlier in the day, Ramesh Chennithala, Congress in charge of Maharashtra, slammed the BJP, claiming that the party is undermining its alliances in the state.

“The BJP is dismantling its alliances. They are forcefully converting alliance partner candidates into their own party candidates. The people will respond to this,” he stated while speaking to reporters.

Earlier on October 26, Chennithala alleged that crores of rupees have been reportedly offered to two of its MLAs to join Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar-led NCP faction, ahead of state Assembly elections.

Chennithala made those allegations while speaking to reporters in the national capital. He also questioned the Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde.

Voting for all 288 constituencies for the Maharashtra Assembly elections are set for November 20 and counting on November 23. In the 2019 Assembly elections, the BJP won 105 seats, the Shiv Sena 56, and the Congress 44. In 2014, the BJP secured 122 seats, the Shiv Sena 63, and the Congress 42.

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Rahul Gandhi not upset, Opposition spreading fake news: NCP (SP) leader Anil Deshmukh

“Opposition parties are spreading false information. It is not true that Rahul Gandhi is upset with leaders in the State,” he said.

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Asserting that Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi was not upset with the Maharashtra unit, NCP (SP) leader Anil Deshmukh on Saturday accused the Mahayuti of spreading fake news over the issue of seat-sharing in the state.

Deshmukh mentioned that meetings between leaders of Congress in Maharashtra, including Balasaheb Thorat, Nana Patole, and Vijay Wadettiwar, and representatives of NCP (SP) and Shiv Sena (UBT), went well.

“Rahul Gandhi is not upset. Leaders like Balasaheb Thorat, Nana Patole and Vijay Wadettiwar all had meetings with leaders of NCP-SCP and Shiv Sena (UBT). We had taken the decision regarding seat sharing based on merit,” the NCP(SP) leader said.

He further clarified that the decision on seat sharing was made based on merit, countering the false information being spread by Opposition parties. Deshmukh also dispelled the notion that Rahul Gandhi was upset with the state leaders.

“Opposition parties are spreading false information. It is not true that Rahul Gandhi is upset with leaders in the State,” he said.

Furthermore, in preparation for the upcoming Assembly polls in Maharashtra, Congress released its second list of 23 candidates on Saturday.

The Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) has concluded talks on sharing seats in 255 constituencies, with each party planning to contest 85 Assembly constituencies, as informed by Maharashtra Congress President Nana Patole.

On the same day, the BJP released a list of 40 star campaigners, including prominent party leaders such as Prime Minister Narendra Modi, party chief Jagat Prakash Nadda and Union Home Minister Amit Shah.

The other leaders from the saffron party — Union Minister Nitin Gadkari, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, Assam Chief Minister Hemant Biswa Sarma, Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, Union Minister Bhupendra Yadav, Smriti Irani, Piyush Goyal, Jyotiraditya Scindia, Pramod Sawant were in the list.

The list also includes names of prominent leaders from the State — Maharashtra deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis, Vinod Tawde, Narayan Rane, Pankaja Munde, Chandrakant (Dada) Patil, Girish Mahajan, Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil, Ashish Shelar, Udayan Raje Bhonsle, Raosaheb Danve Patil, Ashok Chavan, Sudhir Mugantiwar, Navneet Rana, among others.

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