AAP, Cong slug it out over Punjab guv’s ‘my government’ remark
The budget session of the Punjab assembly on Friday saw heated exchanges between members of the ruling Aam Aadmi Party and the Congress over governor Banwarilal Purohit referring to the Bhagwant Mann government as “my government” that eventually led to a walkout by MLAs of the opposition party.
The budget session of the Punjab assembly on Friday saw heated exchanges between members of the ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and the Congress over governor Banwarilal Purohit referring to the Bhagwant Mann government as “my government” that eventually led to a walkout by MLAs of the opposition party.
As soon as Purohit started his speech on the opening day of the session, the leader of opposition Partap Singh Bajwa sprang to his feet and interrupted the governor, stating that he should not use the phrase “my government” in his address. “You are referring to this government as ‘my government’, but this very government does not recognize you. The questions you asked and wrote to them about have not been answered,” the Congress leader said, apparently referring to a tussle between the Raj Bhawan and the state government over the letters sent by the governor regarding some administrative decisions relating to appointments and selections.
Bajwa also spoke about the manner in which the state government had responded to the governor, but much of it could not be heard as his microphone was not switched on. “Do you mean I should not say ‘my government’? This is the custom. Whatever words were uttered were outside the House, not here. My speech is in the House,” said the governor. A heated exchange ensued between the opposition and treasury benches, with the latter objecting to the leader of opposition’s remarks.
Even as cabinet minister Aman Arora said the opposition was trying to disrupt the proceedings, Bajwa continued to object. “Ok. I will say government, not my government. This is the first day of the session,” the governor replied, telling the members to take their seats and avoid controversy. However, members from the treasury benches were immediately up on their feet, along with chief minister Bhagwant Mann, who objected to Purohit’s decision not to use “my government” in his speech, leading to sharp exchanges. The governor then resumed his address but skipped “my government” from the prepared text he was reading out from.
Before he could finish the first paragraph of his 34-page address, Mann got up again and insisted that the governor should use “my government” in his speech, pointing out that the address had been cleared by the cabinet. Purohit responded by telling the CM that he was not a first-time governor. “I was the governor of Assam, I was the governor of Meghalaya, and I was the governor of Tamil Nadu. I have delivered several budget speeches in past five years. At some places, ‘government’ is used whereas ‘my government’ is mentioned at other places,” he said, asserting that it was not important.
As the Congress members kept protesting, Purohit told them that since the cabinet had approved the address, the CM was right to that extent and he was bound by that. The governor again started reading his speech, referring to the present administration as “my government”, and spoke about its “zero tolerance policy” towards corruption with data. He then slipped in a line of his own. “When we are talking about transparency, Caesar’s wife should not only be above suspicion but also be seen to be so,” he said, sticking to the prepared text for the most part.
The governor’s address was again interrupted by Bajwa and his party colleagues when he while speaking on the state government’s initiatives in the education sector, made a mention of the training of 36 school principals in Singapore. Bajwa was the first to rise from his seat and asked the governor if the government had responded to his letter regarding the training of school principals. “This is the governor’s address. I have already said that Caesar’s wife should be above suspicion,” Purohit told the LoP.
When Bajwa and other Congress members kept raising the issue, the governor said: “Now that I am saying ‘my government’, I am confident they will give whatever information I am asking for.”
Congress MLA Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa also referred to the ruling AAP leaders’ remarks about the governor being a “selected” one who was being imposed on the elected government. Purohit also asked the Congress MLAs to let him complete his address and discuss all their points during the debate. The Congress members walked out even as the governor urged them to remain present in the House and listen to his speech. As per Article 176 of the Constitution, the governor is required to address the legislative assembly at the commencement of the first session each year. The governor’s address is prepared by the state government and usually contains an account of its activities and accomplishments in the previous year.