SAD, AAP, BJP attack Cong govt in Punjab over showdown between ministers, chief secy

Opposition SAD, BJP and AAP targeted the Congress-led dispensation in Punjab on Sunday, saying a "constitutional crisis" has erupted and Cabinet ministers have "lost faith" in the government, a day after a showdown between the ministers and the chief secretary.

The leaders of the opposition parties said the state ministers seemed to be "helpless" in the hands of the bureaucracy and asked them to "part ways" with Chief Minister Amarinder Singh.

On Saturday, Punjab ministers had walked out of a pre-Cabinet meeting on excise policy over Chief Secretary (CS) Karan Avtar Singh's alleged "unacceptable behaviour" with cabinet minister Charanjit Singh Channi.

At the meeting, Channi is learnt to have opposed a relief proposal for liquor contractors, expressing concerns over the declining excise revenue. This followed some "curt remarks" from the CS. Upset with the issue, state Finance Minister Manpreet Singh Badal and Channi left the meeting.

Later, all ministers walked out. The incident led to the postponement of a Cabinet meeting scheduled later in the day.

After the incident, Congress MLA Amarinder Singh Raja Warring even sought removal of the CS.

"Respected @capt_amarinder ji, This type of contumacious behaviour by the Chief Secretary time & again is unacceptable. He has regularly disregarded our cabinet ministers & their decisions I request you to kindly remove him from his post immediately," Warring tweeted.

Meanwhile, Shiromani Akali Dal spokesperson Daljit Singh Cheema on Sunday said a "constitutional crisis" had erupted in Punjab, with Cabinet ministers expressing "loss of faith" in the government.

"It is unfortunate when every state is doing its utmost to combat COVID-19, the Punjab Cabinet is fighting with bureaucrats as witnessed in yesterday's pre-cabinet meeting," he said in a statement.

With the Cabinet not "trusting" the bureaucrats and vice versa, there is a leadership crisis due to which Punjab and Punjabis are suffering, he claimed.

"It seemed the chief minister and his coterie are running the government without taking the Cabinet into confidence. The very fact that Cabinet ministers walked out of the meeting indicates that the chief minister does not have their support," Cheema further said.

Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MLA and Leader of Opposition (LoP) Harpal Singh Cheema said the time was ripe for Cabinet ministers to "part ways" with the CM, who has "totally failed" to keep the flock together.

Reacting sharply to the showdown between the ministers and administrative brass, the AAP leader said it had been proved yet again that there was "no government" worth the name in Punjab.

BJP national secretary Tarun Chugh issued a statement describing the incident as "unfortunate".

Chugh claimed that the ministers seemed to be "helpless puppets" in the hands of the bureaucracy.