Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann is all set to take the plunge. After engaging himself with the affairs of the State as the Chief Minister, he is all set to settle down with the girl of his “mother and sister’s choice”.
It is perhaps for the first time in the history of India that a sitting Chief Minister is donning the dress of a groom.
The 48-year-old Mann is set to exchange the wedding vows with Kurukshetra’s Dr Gurpreet Kaur in a private ceremony at the Chief Minister’s residence on Thursday with Delhi Chief Minister and Aam Aadmi Party’s (AAP) national convener Arvind Kejriwal among the selected gathering.
“Mann saab will tie the knot with Dr Gurpreet Kaur, who belongs to Pehowa in Kurukshetra. It will be a private and simple ceremony,” said AAP’s Punjab unit spokesperson.
This will be Mann’s second marriage. Mann was earlier married to Inderpreet Kaur, and had two children from the marriage. Currently, she is residing in the US along with the two children, after their divorce in 2015 — a year after Mann was elected Sangrur MP for the first time in 2014.
Mann had then said that he chose to serve Punjab over his family. He had said that being the elected representative from Sangrur, he could not settle in the US, while his wife could not shift to India to live with him, so they had both sought divorce.
While informing about his divorce, Mann had then said: “Jo latkeyan si chiran ton, oh hal ho gaya; Court ‘ch eh faisla kal ho gaya...ik passe si parivaar, duje passe si parivaar...Main taan yaaron Punjab de val ho gaya… (A long pending issue has been resolved. A decision has been taken in the Court tomorrow. I had to choose between my two families. And I chose Punjab).”
Mann’s 21-year-old daughter Seerat Kaur Mann, and 17-year-old son Dilshan Mann had specially flown down from the US to attend his swearing-in ceremony on March 16 this year.
In a recent candid interview with a private television, Mann showered all praise on his first wife, especially for their children’s upbringing. At the time of their divorce, Seerat was just 14, and Dilshan was 10.
WEDDING AT CM RESIDENCE
Mann’s wedding rituals will be performed at the Chief Minister’s official residence, in the presence of the family members and very close friends. Among the attendees, AAP’s Delhi leadership, including Kejriwal, Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia is also expected to attend the wedding. The news of Mann’s wedding was kept under wraps till now. But as soon as the news broke on Wednesday, the preparations for the wedding started at the Chief Minister’s residence in Chandigarh’s Sector-2.
AAP’s Rajya Sabha MP Raghav Chadha is taking care of all the preparations and arrangements of the wedding. Sources informed that only selected family members have been invited for the function with just about 25-30 people set to witness the two tying the nuptial knot.
MOTHER AND SISTER PLAYED MATCHMAKERS
Sources maintained that Mann’s mother Harpal Kaur and sister Manpreet Kaur have played the role of matchmaker, and “arranging” the wedding. Reports are that the two families were closely associated with each other for years. Dr Gurpreet already knew the Mann family, and being Manpreet’s close friend, she used to frequently visit their house. Even during the poll campaigning, Maan’s mother had expressed desire that her son should get married, and it is believed that it was after her insistence that he agreed for the marriage. Mann’s mother and sister played a visible role in his election campaign and were the only family members by his side when the AAP declared him the CM face for Punjab.
WHO IS DR GURPREET
Chief Minister Mann’s would-be wife hails from Pehowa in Kurukshetra in Haryana; but lives in Punjab’s Rajpura. Daughter of a farmer, she joined Mulana Medical College, Ambala, in 2013; and completed her medical in 2017. In 2019, he met Bhagwant Mann, who was Lok Sabha MP from Sangrur at that time. After this, she was seen participating in Mann’s all special programs. Reports are that she was also seen with Mann’s family on a number of occasions, including his swearing-in ceremony.
WISHES POUR IN
Soon after the news broke about Mann getting married, congratulatory messages started pouring in, with many party leaders also visiting the Chief Minister’s residence to wish him. Punjab Cabinet Minister Harjot Singh Bains took to Twitter to congratulate the Chief Minister. “Wishing my chief minister @bhagwantmann ji a very happy and blessed married life ahead. I wish them both a lifetime of love, respect and companionship,” he tweeted. Punjab Congress chief Amrinder Singh Raja Warring also tweeted, “My heartiest congratulations to the CM @BhagwantMann Ji as he starts a new chapter in his life tomorrow. Best wishes for a happy and blissful married life ahead.”