Punjab Vidhan Sabha’s five-day budget session is set to begin from Friday with the opposition ready with all the ammunition to target the ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) over the issue of “deteriorating” law and order, especially the brutal daylight killing of Punjab singer Sidhu Moosewala; besides delay in fulfilling it major pre-poll promises.
AAP, which has come to the power in Punjab for the first time and that too amidst the state’s poor fiscal position, would face a major challenge to implement the “guarantees” it gave to the people of the state in the run up to state assembly polls. AAP, in March this year, formed the government in Punjab with a thumping majority of 92 seats in a 117-member House.
Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema, who had sought suggestions and opinions from the people of all categories, has already made it clear that AAP’s maiden budget would be ‘Janta Budget’ (the people’s budget).
Notably, the ruling dispensation had received suggestions from the general public to allocate more funds in education, health, and agriculture sectors, which sources said, are among the key focus areas of the State Government which will reflect in the state budget, to be presented on June 27.
On the first day of the session, the House will assemble for obituary references and motion of thanks on the Governor’s address, he gave during the previous session, followed by a discussion on it.
After presentation of budget proposals on June 27 (Monday), the general discussion on the budget will take place. According to the tentative schedule, the budget session will continue till June 30.
Opposition Congress, the BJP, and SAD have targeted the Mann Government over alleged deteriorating law and order situation, especially in the wake of the previous month’s gruesome killing of globally-renowned Punjabi singer Sidhu Moosewala. They have also slammed the State Government over “unfulfilled promises".
Notably, the Punjab Assembly, in March, had passed a vote-on-account for the first three months (April-June) of the financial year 2022-23.
The challenge for AAP, which had in the run up to the assembly polls blamed previous regimes of pushing the state into a fiscal mess, will be to get the state economy back on track. Mann had recently said the AAP government’s focus was to provide jobs to youth, develop schools and hospitals, and eradicate corruption and mafia, to make the state ’Rangla’ (vibrant) Punjab again.