Says doing so would betray and discriminate against Punjabis who sacrificed the most for the country besides going back on commitments made to hand over Chandigarh to Punjab
Punjab Newsline, Chandigarh-
Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president Sukhbir Singh Badal today appealed to the union government not to introduce the Constitution (131st Amendment) Bill in the coming winter session of parliament, asserting doing so would amount to betraying and discriminating against brave Punjabis who had sacrificed the most for the country and going back on all commitments made to Punjab to hand over Chandigarh to it.
In a statement here, the SAD president said the Constitution (131st Amendment) Bill sought to take the union territory permanently out of Punjab’s administrative and political control. “It seeks to end Punjab’s claim to Chandigarh as it’s capital city”.
Describing the proposed legislation as an assault on the rights of Punjab, Mr Sukhbir Badal said “this is also against federalism and amounts to discriminating against Punjabis who have been in the vanguard of the freedom struggle as well as protection of the borders of the country besides ushering in the green revolution which ensured food security to the nation”.
Asserting that the proposed Bill would also go against the solemn commitments given by the centre to restore Chandigarh to Punjab, Mr Badal said “the union government accepted in principle to transfer Chandigarh to Punjab in 1970”. He said subsequently the Rajiv - Longowal accord fixed a deadline of January, 1986 for the transfer of Chandigarh to Punjab. “The accord was also ratified by parliament but did not see the light of day”.
Badal said over the last few decades the centre had steadily diluted Punjab’s claim to Chandigarh by not adhering to the 60 : 40 ratio formula in posting employees from Punjab and Haryana respectively in the union territory, posting officers from the UT (AGMUT) cadre in Chandigarh and other measures including diluting Punjab’s control over the Panjab University.
Badal said Punjabis were feeling betrayed and discriminated by these measures. “Punjabis are agitated that the centre has chosen to ignore Punjab’s right over it’s capital city and is trying to bring in a dispensation which will ensure the union territory is administered solely by the union government”.