News Analysis India

Tag: Punjab CM

  • BKU thanks Punjab CM Channi for support, but says won’t share stage with political parties

    By PTI

    GHAZIABAD: The Bharatiya Kisan Union has welcomed Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi’s support to the farmers’ stir but maintained that their stage will not be shared with any political party.

    The Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) also refuted allegations that their protest against the Centre’s farm laws is being funded by opposition parties.

    “First and foremost, this is not a protest run by any political party or the opposition. It is a farmers’ movement against the three new anti-farmer laws brought by the BJP-led government,” Saurabh Upadhyay, a BKU spokesperson said.

    “There is no doubt that the current opposition is weak. We thank the new Punjab chief minister for supporting the protest. However, we are not going to share our stage with any political party,” Upadhyay said.

    Soon after his swearing-in as the Punjab CM, Channi, who replaced Amarinder Singh after a power tussle within the Congress Party, had on Monday extended support to the stir.

    The BKU, whose members and supporters led by national spokesperson Rakesh Tikait are encamped at Ghazipur on the Delhi-Uttar Pradesh border since late November also refuted allegations of its agitation being funded by opposition parties.

    “If the Congress had funded the protest, then why had former Punjab CM Amarinder Singh asked farmers to go to Delhi instead of pitching tents in his state.

    He had said that the protests were hurting Punjab,” Upadhyay argued.

    “Our protest is being organised in every state irrespective of political party affiliations. We have staged demonstrations in UP, Delhi and even in Congress-ruled Rajasthan,” he said.

    The farmers’ stir on the three Delhi border points of Singhu, Tikri and Ghazipur will be completing 10 months on Sunday.

    On the future course of action, Upadhyay said the movement is being led by the Sanyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM) and the BKU has been an integral part of it.

    “A Bharat Bandh has been called on September 27. The top priority is to ensure the success of this bandh. After this, the SKM will take a call on the future course of action for the protest. The BKU will continue its fight for the farmers,” he added.

    Hundreds of farmers encamped at the three border sites of Delhi are demanding that the three contentious farm laws be repealed and a legal guarantee provided to them on minimum support price for crops.

    Tikait has been leading the protest at Ghazipur on the Delhi-Uttar Pradesh border.

    The Centre, which has held 11 rounds of formal dialogue with the farmers, has maintained that the new laws are pro-farmer.

  • Punjab CM Charanjit Singh Channi leaves for Delhi, may discuss Cabinet expansion with Congress leadership

    By PTI

    CHANDIGARH: Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi on Thursday left for Delhi, where he is likely to discuss the expansion of the state Cabinet with the party’s central leadership, sources said.

    Channi flew from the Amritsar airport.

    His visit to Delhi assumes significance as Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra had returned to the national capital from Shimla on Wednesday.

    Former state party chief Sunil Jakhar had also accompanied Rahul and Priyanka on a flight to Delhi.

    Channi, his two deputies Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa and OP Soni and state Congress chief Navjot Singh Sidhu on Tuesday had gone to the national capital to discuss the expansion of the new Cabinet with the party leadership.

    The team had met AICC general secretary KC Venugopal and general secretary Harish Rawat.

    The cabinet is likely to see some fresh faces, said the sources.

    Names of Pargat Singh, Raj Kumar Verka, Gurkirat Singh Kotli, Sangat Singh Gilzian, Surjit Dhiman, Amarinder Singh Raja Warring and Kuljit Singh Nagra are doing the rounds.

    Pargat Singh, considered close to Sidhu, is at present the Punjab Congress general secretary and Gilzian is a working president of the party’s state unit.

    There is a speculation that Amarinder Singh’s staunch loyalists–Rana Gurmit Singh Sodhi, who was the sports minister and Sadhu Singh Dharamsot, who was the social justice empowerment minister–may be dropped.

  • BR Ambedkar museum will act as beacon to perpetuate his legacy: Punjab CM Charanjit Singh Channi

    By PTI

    KAPURTHALA: Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi on Thursday said the upcoming state-of-the-art BR Ambedkar museum will act as a beacon for perpetuating the glorious legacy of Baba Saheb amongst coming generations.

    Addressing the gathering after laying the foundation stone of the museum and handing over job letters to youth in a state-level mega job fair here at IK Gujral Punjab Technical University, the CM said the state government will spend Rs 150 crore on this prestigious project which will be a humble but befitting tribute to the iconic leader.

    He said this memorial will go a long way in perpetuating the life and philosophy of this great leader who played a great role in the welfare of the poorest of poor, according to an official statement.

    Channi said this project will be a unique amalgamation of facts in the subjects pertaining to the life, work and philosophy of Ambedkar, a Dalit icon and one of the principal architects of the Indian Constitution.

    On this occasion, Channi also performed ‘bhangra’ with a group of youths on a stage.

    The CM further said this aesthetically designed museum will be spread over an area of 25 acres and will come up with an investment of about Rs 150 crore.

    He said the museum will be divided into five zones with galleries showcasing life, philosophy, work, personal life and socio-economic impact of Baba Sahib’s philosophy.

    Paying rich tributes to Ambedkar, Channi described him as a great scholar, jurist, economist, social reformer and a statesman.

    Complementing the newly employed youngsters, he said it is good for them that they have got these jobs but this shall not be their final destination and they have to strive hard for achieving more success in future.

    He asked the youngsters to take inspiration from Baba Sahib for excelling in life.

    Channi assured fulsome support and cooperation to youngsters for carving out a new and vibrant Punjab.

    He said his only aim is to make Punjab a prosperous and progressive state for which he will make strenuous efforts.

    Soliciting support of youth for making Punjab a corruption free state, Channi said the state government will adopt zero tolerance policy towards corruption for which youth needs to play a proactive role.

    He said education is the only key to uplift the living standard of weaker and underprivileged sections due to which the government is laying major thrust on strengthening education infrastructure in the state.

    He said the state government will soon set up Dr BR Ambedkar Institute of Management in collaboration with IIM, Amritsar at Kapurthala.

    Likewise, he said, the School of Ambedkar Thoughts and Baba Sahib Ambedkar centre for Research in Inequality and Research will also be set up in Doaba region.

  • Chartered flight to Delhi: What’s the problem if son of poor man boards jet, asks Punjab CM Charanjit Singh Channi

    By PTI

    CHANDIGARH: Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi on Wednesday defended the use of a chartered flight by him to travel to Delhi, a day after the Opposition raised questions over it.

    To a question on his visit to the national capital on a chartered flight on Tuesday, Channi asked reporters, “What is the problem if the son of a poor man boarded a jet?” However, he refused to reply to a question on whether the government will foot the bill.

    Channi was in Jalandhar where he was asked about his visit to Delhi by reporters.

    The chief minister, along with his deputies Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa, OP Soni and Punjab Congress chief Navjot Singh Sidhu, went to Delhi on a chartered flight on Tuesday to discuss the expansion of the new Punjab cabinet with the party’s central leadership.

    Sidhu uploaded a photo of him with Channi and Randhawa standing next to the chartered plane.

    The Congress leaders drew flak from the Opposition for travelling to Delhi on a chartered flight.

    Taking a swipe at them, the Shiromani Akali Dal said Congress leaders opt for “private jets for travelling just 250 km to Delhi”, while the Aam Aadmi Party said the grand old party has not been able to “give up its royal habits”.

    Raveen Thukral, media advisor to former Punjab chief minister Amarinder Singh, also took potshots at the Congress leaders for travelling to Delhi on a chartered flight.

  • Rahul, Priyanka inexperienced; will field candidate against Sidhu in Assembly polls: Ex-Punjab CM Amarinder Singh

    By PTI

    CHANDIGARH: Former Punjab chief minister Amarinder Singh on Wednesday called Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra “inexperienced”, and said he will pit a strong candidate against state party chief Navjot Singh Sidhu in the upcoming Assembly polls.

    Amarinder Singh had resigned as the Punjab CM recently amid infighting in the state Congress.

    In a series of interviews, he said, “Priyanka and Rahul are like my children. This should not have ended like this. I am hurt.”

    “I would not have taken MLAs on a flight to Goa or someplace. That is not how I operate. I don’t do gimmicks and the Gandhi siblings know that is not my way,” he said in a statement.

    The “Gandhi children” were quite “inexperienced” and their advisers were clearly “misguiding” them, the Congress leader asserted.

    Singh said he will fight Sidhu’s elevation to the Punjab chief ministership “tooth and nail”, adding that he was ready to make any sacrifice to save the country from such a “dangerous man”.

    He will pit a strong candidate against the PPCC president in the 2022 Assembly polls to ensure his defeat, Amarinder Singh said.

    Singh said he had even told Congress president Sonia Gandhi that he was ready to hang his boots and allow someone else to take over as the CM after leading the Congress to another sweeping win in Punjab.

    “But that did not happen, so I will fight,” he asserted taking strong exception to his “humiliation” by calling a Congress Legislative Party in a secretive manner.

    The former CM said he is still keeping his political options open and talking to his friends before deciding on his future course of action.

    “You can be old at 40 and young at 80,” he said, making it clear that he did not see his age as a hurdle.

  • Using SC leaders for votes and then dropping them is old habit of Congress: BJP

    By Express News Service

    NEW DELHI: The BJP on Monday termed the Congress decision to pick Charanjeet Singh Channi as Punjab chief minister as a short-term opportunist plank aimed at grabbing Scheduled caste votes.Accusing the Congress of doing just lip-service to the political aspirations of SCs, BJP leader Vijay Sonkar said, “In 2003, the Congress had chosen Dalit leader Sushil Kumar Shinde as the chief minister of Maharashtra. It fought the elections with Shinde as CM in 2004. But after winning the election, the Congress chose Vilasrao Deshmukh for the post.”

    Referring to the appointment of Jagannath Pahadia in 1980 as the chief minister of Rajasthan, Sonkar said, “After one year, the Congress won the elections but the party replaced Pahadia with Shiv Charan Mathur. This is not the first occasion that the Congress is opting for Dalit faces as chief minister ahead of elections. The past instances show that the Congress’s Dalit card is bogus,” he said. 

    To buttress his point, the BJP leader also quoted Congress’s Harish Rawat’s comments that the party will contest the Punjab elections under the leadership of Navjot Singh Sidhu. Sonkar challenged the Congress leadership to commit that Channi would be allowed to remain in the CM’s chair if the party wins a mandate again.

    BJP national general secretary and the Punjab unit in-charge Dushyant Gautam also alleged that the Congress had resorted to the old strategy of making a Dalit as CM for a few months before the elections. Gautam, also from the SC community, claimed the Congress often used Babur Jagjivan Ram to get SC votes but “insulted” him and even removed him from the party when it came to giving him his due. 

  • Punjab CM Channi calls for repeal of farm laws

    Express News Service

    CHANDIGARH: Punjab’s first Dalit Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi was sworn in by Governor Banwarilal Purohit on Monday. Channi’s two deputies Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa and Om Prakash Soni, too, were administered the oath of office in a ceremony attended by former Congress president and wayanad MP Rahul Gandhi, Punjab Congress president Navjot Singh Sidhu and AICC in-charge of the state Harish Rawat, among others.

    Soon after taking over, Channi committed his government’s support to farmers protesting against the new farm laws and urged the Centre to repeal the ‘black laws’. Stating his government would act on the 18-point agenda set by the party, Channi said a reduction in electricity tariff and waiver of all outstanding dues of the poor would be announced after the first Cabinet meeting. He asserted that all the poll promises would be fulfilled.

    Thanking the high command for choosing a common man like him to helm the affairs of Punjab, Channi recalled his days of want, saying, “My father used to fix tents at others’ houses and I drove a rickshaw.” Channi said while other parties only paid lip service to the uplift of the common man, ‘revolutionary leader’ like Rahul Gandhi ensured a commoner like him could become CM.

    Invoking Guru Gobind Singh, Channi vowed to act on the long-pending demands of action against sand mafia. “I am a representative of the common man, the farmer and all the oppressed. I am not a representative of the rich. Those who are into sand-mining and other illegal activities, they should not come to me. I am not your representative.’’

    Assuring transparent governance, Channi assured to resolve the issues of the protesting state employees. He said the Congress’ ideology was to take everybody along, adding: “The party is supreme, not the chief minister or the cabinet. The government will work as per the party’s ideology.”

    Thanking his predecessor Amarinder Singh, Channi said he would carry forward the good work done by the former, and added: “I will complete all of Captain’s unfinished work. He is known as the protector of water rights. He is our party leader,” he said.

  • Punjab CM Charanjit Singh Channi directs government employees to be present in offices by 9 am

    By PTI

    CHANDIGARH: Newly sworn-in Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi issued directions to all government officers and employees on Monday to ensure their presence during office timings.

    He directed them to reach office by 9 am and remain available for the public till the office hours in the evening, according to an official statement.

    The move is aimed at bringing discipline in government offices, the statement said.

    Channi was sworn in as the chief minister of Punjab on Monday.

    He was administered the oath by the governor.

    Stressing on the need to bring transparency in government offices, Channi directed all officers and employees to deal with the grievances of people on priority.

    “To ensure availability of all the government officers and employees in the offices during official hours, the administrative secretaries and department heads should conduct surprise checks twice a week to keep vigil on the employees working under them,” he said.

    The chief minister also asked the administrative secretaries and department heads to keep a close watch on the activities and records at their offices.

    Meanwhile, after paying obeisance at the Gurdwara Sri Katalgarh Sahib in Chamkaur Sahib earlier in the day, Channi said justice would soon be done in the 2015 sacrilege incidents.

    He said he is a devout Sikh of “Guru Sahib” and cannot tolerate that culprits responsible for the desecration of a religious text are roaming around freely.

    In an official statement, the chief minister also announced Rs 50 crore for the development of the Chamkaur Sahib constituency, which he currently represents in the Assembly.

    In a brief speech, he also highlighted a theme park that would be inaugurated on November 6.

  • Bihar BJP leader Sushil Kumar Modi terms appointment of new CM in Punjab an insult to Dalits

    Express News Service

    PATNA: Bihar senior BJP leader and MP in Rajya Sabha Sushil Kumar Modi on Friday termed the appointment of Charanjit Singh Channi as the CM for a few months in Punjab an “insult” to the Dalits by the Congress Party.

    Modi alleged that Congress’s over-confidence on pro-Pakistani Sidhu threatens national security.

    “Making Charanjit Singh Channi the Chief Minister for just six months in Punjab and announcing that he will contest the assembly elections in the face of Navjot Singh Sidhu, another contender for the post, is an insult to the Dalit leader”, Modi said.

    He said that the Congress Party by relying more on Sidhu, has also indirectly passed a no-confidence motion on Channi’s abilities on the very first day.

    “The Dalits of Punjab understand the reality of the ‘Dalit love’ of the Congress”, Modi said.

    He, slamming the Congress Party high command, said: “In the Punjab, where drones, RDX and lethal weapons coming from Pakistan are caught every day, Rahul Gandhi’s growing confidence in the state Congress President Sidhu, who hugged Pakistan’s Army Chief Bajwa, is a threat to national security”.

    He said that the Congress leadership should respond to the danger, warned by former Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh, in the interest of nation.

    Modi is the first from the Bihar BJP lashes out at the Congress Party alleging that the Congress in Punjab is doing politics at the cost of the security of the country.

    After the Congress Party, Modi also targeted RJD leader Tejashwi Prasad Yadav for asking ‘if achche din aaye kya, saying that Tejashwi Yadav doesn’t see anything good happening in Bihar because of his political myopia. He said that Tejashwi Yadav doesn’t see good days in Bihar but the people are seeing “achche din”(good days) and saying “thank you” to NDA with their votes.” 

  • Free water, smaller power bills: Charanjit Singh Channi takes charge as CM in poll-bound Punjab

    By PTI

    CHANDIGARH: Punjab’s first Dalit chief minister, Charanjit Singh Channi, took charge on Monday, promising free water supply to smaller homes, a reduction in power tariff and a transparent government for the “common man” in the poll-bound state.

    Two deputy chief ministers, Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa and O P Soni, were also sworn in by Governor Banwarilal Purohit at a Raj Bhavan ceremony, also attended by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi.

    At his first press conference later, Channi, 58, teared up as he described himself as an “aam aadmi” — a common man — and a poor person, while thanking the Congress high command for picking him for the post.

    The three-time MLA from Chamkaur Sahib recalled that he has pedalled a rickshaw and his father ran a “tent house”.

    Channi didn’t offer many details but the sops appear to rival those announced by the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), which is the main opposition in Punjab.

    The CM said there will be no water and sewage charges for houses up to 150 or 200 square yards in urban areas.

    A decision on this will be taken when the cabinet meets, he said.

    His government would also reduce the electricity tariff.

    “My wife is a doctor, my brother is a doctor. There are employees in my house. When the power bill comes, my wife tells me that the money goes from her pocket these bills will be reduced,” he said The cabinet will also take a decision on dealing with sand-mining mafias.

    Channi said he and his party did not want the mafia in the state.

    Hours before the swearing-in, a remark by Harish Rawat, the Punjab in-charge at the AICC, triggered a controversy over Channi’s role in the few months remaining before the assembly elections.

    Rawat reportedly said the election will be fought under the leadership of Pradesh Congress Committee headed by Navjot Singh Sidhu.

    Former state Congress chief Sunil Jakhar tweeted that he found the remark “baffling” and it could “undermine” the authority of the new CM.

    Channi and the two deputy chief ministers — a Sikh and a Hindu in the balancing act by the Congress leadership — took their oaths in Punjabi.

    All three were part of the Cabinet led by Amarinder Singh, who resigned as CM on Saturday just before the Congress Legislature Party meeting called by the party’s central leadership.

    After hectic consultations on Sunday, the party picked Channi as the new CLP leader.

    For months, Amarinder Singh and Sidhu had been gunning for each other in a bitter power struggle in the state unit of the Congress.

    Channi was considered to be in the Sidhu camp.

    Rawat and Sidhu were by his side as Channi addressed the media.

    Channi urged the Centre to repeal the three laws over which farmers have been protesting for months.

    The CM said he will become the voice of the common people of Punjab and will always remain accessible.

    “Together, we have to make Punjab prosperous. Punjab is primarily an agrarian state. This government is pro-farmer,” he said.

    On Amarinder Singh, Channi said he did good work as CM.

    “He is also known as the protector of water rights. He is our party leader.”

    The new CM said his government will remain committed to the Congress leadership’s 18-point agenda for the state and the previous election promises will be fulfilled.

    The party agenda includes justice in the case of the desecration of the Guru Granth Sahib in 2015, combating drug trafficking and scrapping power purchase pacts signed earlier.

    “We will ensure a transparent government,” he said.

    The chief minister assured that the issues over which government employees are protesting will be resolved.

    He invoked the teachings of Guru Gobind Singh, quoting also the hymn ‘Deh Shiva Bar Mohe’.

    Channi’s appointment allows the party to play the Dalit card in the elections.

    An estimated 30 per cent of the state’s population, counting both Sikhs and Hindus, is from the scheduled caste community.

    His deputy Randhawa, 62, is a Jat Sikh who represents the Dera Baba Nanak constituency in Gurdaspur, and Soni, 64, was elected from Amritsar-Central.

    Earlier, the name of Brahm Mohindra, a senior minister in the previous cabinet, was doing the rounds for the post of deputy chief minister, and AICC treasurer Pawan Kumar Bansal even congratulated him on Twitter.

    Amarinder Singh was not seen at the swearing-in ceremony attended by senior Congress leaders.