CHANDIGARH: Punjab Congress MLAs on Friday, May 1, staged a walkout from the Assembly during the special one-day session to mark the International Labour Day after heated exchanges over conduct inside the House with treasury benches. The main Opposition party even sought breath analyser and dope tests of all the members, including Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann.
Leader of Opposition in Punjab Assembly, Partap Singh Bajwa, demanded a closed-door alcohol test on all MLAs after allegations of Mann appearing drunk inside the Vidhan Sabha.
“What should we even do coming to the Assembly where the Chief Minister is in an inebriated state? What is the purpose of holding a session when the head of the state is completely sozzled? We demand that everyone’s test be conducted,” Bajwa said.
Bajwa even wrote a letter to Punjab Assembly Speaker Kultar Singh Sandhwan in this regard.
The party alleged that questions were raised over the conduct and physical condition of members during the proceedings. It insisted that medical verification should be done to maintain transparency and accountability in the House.
Following the walkout, several Congress MLAs are believed to have entered the Speaker’s office and asked for an “alcometer” test of all legislators.
Amid heated arguments, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) blamed the Opposition for disrupting proceedings and lowering the dignity of the House. The Speaker even intervened on several occasions to maintain decorum.
Also, Bhagwant Mann objected to Congress MLA Sukhpal Singh Khaira’s conduct during proceedings, which lead to disruptions and heated exchanges between the treasury and the Opposition benches.
Defending the Punjab AAP MLAs, Finance Minister Harpal Cheema told mediapersons that Congress’ allegations that Chief Minister Mann was drunk were totally false.
“A few days ago, a complaint was filed against him (Khaira) and a report subsequently surfaced, accusing him of illegally encroaching upon Panchayat land,” IANS quoted Cheema as saying.
Punjab Minister Aman Arora said, “It is unfortunate when AAP wants to increase labour wages, but they (Opposition) are talking about such baseless things. All MLAs stand by AAP and Arvind Kejriwal.”
Speaking on the matter, Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) in a post on X said, “It is a matter of great shame that Chief Minister of Punjab Bhagwant Mann showed up drunk with alcohol in the hallowed chamber of the Vidhan Sabha on the occasion of ‘Labour Day’ today! You can see for yourselves how the Chief Minister is behaving in the Vidhan Sabha.”
State working BJP President Ashwani Sharma said, “On a solemn occasion like Labour Day, in a specially convened session, Chief Minister @BhagwantMann-ji’s faltering tongue is revealing a harsh truth. Such a grave insult to the dignity of the sacred legislative Assembly and to the office of the Chief Minister has never been witnessed before. Punjab cannot function like this.”
Agencies