Chandigarh: The ruling AAP won a confidence motion moved by chief minister Bhagwant Mann in Punjab assembly on Friday. The CM said he would take along a copy of the motion when he meets President Droupadi Murmu on May 5 to demand recall of the seven Rajya Sabha MPs — six from Punjab — who recently defected to BJP.AAP was united and the motion was moved to counter “rumours” that the party was on the brink of breaking up, Mann said.According to official sources, 88 of the 94 AAP MLAs were present in the House and voted for the motion. Two AAP MLAs are abroad, two are in jail and two hospitalised.This AAP move comes in the wake of the Rajya Sabha setback when seven AAP MPs, led by Raghav Chadha, merged with BJP. On Friday, AAP MLAs reaffirmed that they stand united as loyal soldiers of the party. The govt said the motion was passed “unanimously.” Opposition members were not present in the House when it was taken up by voice vote.Presenting the confidence motion, Mann said attempts were being made to destabilise govt through misinformation. “Canards are being spread to create a sense of doubt in the minds of the people. But we have built this party with hard work and stand firmly with Arvind Kejriwal,” he said.Mann said the opposition’s claims that AAP MLAs are in contact with them were merely a reflection of their own “panic”. “They are struggling to gain any traction ahead of the next elections despite their negative propaganda. Their own leaders — Capt Amarinder Singh, Sunil Jakhar, Manpreet Singh Badal and Fateh Jung Bajwa — are not in touch with them,” he said, adding that the “broom is busy cleaning up the political system”.Mann claimed that BJP was in a state of panic after AAP won more than 700 local body seats in Gujarat. He suggested that BJP’s frustration lies with Punjab’s new anti-sacrilege law, which prevents them from fuelling communal tensions for political gain. “That is why BJP is cooking up such stories,” Mann alleged.Alleging that Congress and BJP are hand in glove, Mann said: “There have been Enforcement Directorate raids on Congress leaders in the past but they never protested.”The motion was seconded by finance minister Harpal Singh Cheema, who said people of Punjab had elected only two BJP MLAs in the 117-member assembly in 2022. “But the Rajya Sabha MPs were arm-twisted and intimidated to join BJP. There were ED raids on the premises of Ashok Mittal,” he said.Cheema accused BJP of running a “parallel Constitution” and attacking the federal structure. He said BJP was trying to reach the figure of 123 members in Rajya Sabha by taking MPs from other parties. “After seven AAP MPs joined them, they are still 113. They may still try to follow this undemocratic process in other states to get a majority,” he alleged.Cabinet ministers Sanjeev Arora and Aman Arora spoke in favour of the resolution. AAP MLA Manjit Singh Bilaspur vowed that he would always stand with his party and would return with a bigger majority.Arora said the confidence motion was necessitated due to claims by the opposition that a section of the AAP MLAs were in touch with them. “The resolution has been called to save democracy. Otherwise the party stands united,” he said.Later, Mann told mediapersons outside the Assembly, “All speculations have been put to rest today regarding all those who were saying that 65 or 40 MLAs of AAP could switch sides.”Mann said Congress not being present in the House was also a form of supporting govt’s confidence motion. “The confidence motion secured unanimous support in the House, underlining the strength and unity of the Mann-led govt,” said an official statement.BJP held a mock session outside assembly where it ‘passed’ a no-confidence motion against AAP govt.Punjab BJP working president and Pathankot MLA Ashwani Sharma criticised govt for not releasing DA dues and said: “Crucial issues like gangsterism, drug deaths and law and order collapse are not being debated. AAP’s politics is built on untruth, and its promise to make Punjab drug-free has completely failed.”Punjab BJP president Sunil Jakhar said it was the “darkest hour of democracy”. “People of Punjab have already judged this govt and are eager to remove it. AAP leadership has turned Punjab into an ATM and is trying to extract as much as possible before leaving power,” he alleged, and warned bureaucrats not to “work against rules”. “All their assets and properties are known,” he remarked.The mock assembly also passed “condolence resolutions” for over 1,600 youths who allegedly died due to drugs. MSID:: 130681001 413 |
