Chandigarh: The ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government on Saturday drew severe flak from the opposition after its Cabinet minister Kuldeep Dhaliwal was found heading a “non-existent’’ department for 20 months.
This opposition attack came after a gazette notification dated February 21, issued by the chief secretary stated: “In partial modification of the Punjab government notification dated September 23, 2024, regarding allocation of portfolios amongst the ministers, the Department of Administrative Reforms earlier allotted to Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal, Cabinet minister, is not in existence as on date. Therefore, on the advice of the Chief Minister of Punjab, the Governor of Punjab is pleased to make the following amendment: With effect from February 7, 2025, Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal will hold the charge of NRI Affairs Minister.’’
It may be recalled that Dhaliwal, who earlier held the charge of the agriculture and farmers welfare portfolio, was relieved of it during a cabinet reshuffle in May 2023. He retained the NRI affairs department and was also assigned the administrative reforms department. In another reshuffle in September 2024, he retained both the portfolios, though it has now come to light that the administrative reforms department did not exist.
Notably, Dhaliwal was neither given any staff nor a secretary was allocated to this department nor did any meeting of this department take place. In other words, the department which had come defunct remained on papers only. Even though Dhaliwal was also said to have asked the government about the absence of the said staff, he continued to hold the department.
However, explaining the development chief minister Mann told newspersons that the department has now been restructured to bring reforms. It had no staff nor office and was named for formalities. “We are also looking at merging several other departments with similar functions into one department for people’s convenience and to bring efficiency’’, he said and gave an example of agriculture, soil conservation and drainage departments which had similar works.
OPPN SLAMS AAP
However, the development gave ample ammunition to the opposition parties to slam chief minister Bhagwant Mann-led AAP government.
Punjab Congress chief and Ludhiana MP Amarinder Singh Raja Warring took to X to say: “What a `Badlaav’!’’
Flaying the AAP government, Shiromani Akali Dal leader and Bathinda MP Harsimrat Kaur Badal said: “Governance @AAPPunjanb style. Allocate non existence departments to ministers who themselves are ignorant of the portfolios they hold. All this happening because ministers have no role in governance as the government is being run with remote control from Delhi.’’
The Punjab BJP general secretary Subhash Sharma said that it showed the government’s mental bankruptcy that a department which is not in existence, has been allocated. Neither those who allotted it, nor those who had been allotted the department, were aware that it did not exist.
