In a last ditch effort to woo no less than 27,000 contractual or ad hoc employees by regularising them before the imposition of the model code of conduct, the SAD-BJP led Punjab Government on Friday decided to hold a special Vidhan Sabha Session on Monday to pass certain “important” Bills.
Continuing with its spree to launch populist measures, the Government is expected to place its ordinance for setting up a regulatory authority for private schools across the State in the list of business during the emergency session.
The decision to convene a day’s special session was taken by the Cabinet on Friday afternoon within 24 hours it had its meeting on Thursday evening.
The importance of this session can be gauged from the fact that Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal has himself went to Governor VP Badnore to seek his permission to convene the House.
Sources indicated that all the ordinances, which the Badal Cabinet had cleared, will be converted into Bills during the session — keeping an eye on the ensuing State Assembly polls.
Notably, the Cabinet had already passed the two ordinances — regarding regularisation of 27,000 employees, and setting up of regulatory authority for private schools.
The Governor’s office, on November 30, had sent back the Ordinance on regularisation citing technical reasons.
Sources maintained that Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Badal, accompanied by a battery of officers, including the Chief Secretary and State advocate general, had met the Governor but failed to persuade him to sign the ordinance on regularisation, following which the Cabinet meeting was convened.
“Elections are just about two months or so away, and the present Government may not be there to pass these Ordinances and would eventually be annulled. To save these ordinances, the Government has decided to convene the session by calling the Cabinet meeting in a huff,” a senior Government official told The Pioneer.
“We do not have any other way out to implement these decisions, which is only possible by converting these ordinances into Acts…that is why this session has been called,” said State Education Minister Daljit Singh Cheema.
The Election Commission of India had earlier announced to hold elections in January last or February starting, and the mode code of conduct is expected to be imposed anytime now.
As per the Government’s official statement, the Cabinet decided to convene a one-day session at 2 pm on December 19 (Monday) “to carry out important legislative business”.
The Cabinet also cleared the proposal of Higher Education department for taking over Sant Baba Sewa Singh Memorial Khalsa Girls College, Munne (Nurpur Bedi), in Roopnagar district by the State Government — a decision expected to go a long way in providing quality and affordable education to the girl students in the Kandi area.
“What is the point in calling the session now…This unexpected move is clearly aimed at implementing populist steps the Badal Government has been taking in a huff before the code,” said a senior Congress leader, who has already resigned from the House in the wake of adverse decision by the Supreme Court on Sutlej-Yamuna link (SYl) canal issue.
The session is expected to be attended only by the treasury benches, as the entire Opposition, including 42 Congress MlAs and three Independents, has resigned on the SYl issue.