With Chandigarh Administration reportedly deciding to allot 10 acres to Haryana to build a new Assembly building in the Union Territory (UT), Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president Sukhbir Singh Badal on Thursday termed the move as “a gross injustice to Punjab”.

Castigating both the Central as well as the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Governments in Punjab for allegedly colluding with each other, Badal accused the two want the land allotted for a separate Assembly building to Haryana in the Union Territory to take political advantage in Assembly elections due next year in the neighbouring state.

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He said the decision was in continuation to an announcement made by Union Home Minister Amit Shah that Haryana would be given land in the UT for a separate Assembly building at the North Zonal Council meeting of States at Jaipur on 9 July 2022.

“Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann did not protest against this announcement which has led to grave dilution of Punjab’s right over Chandigarh,” he noted.

The SAD chief said the Punjab CM has played a dubious role on this sensitive issue by not opposing when the proposal was first mooted by Haryana. He said Mann did not oppose it but instead also requested the Centre to allot land to Punjab also for the same purpose.

“This emboldened the Central government and has finally led to the formal allocation of ten acres of land to Haryana to construct a separate Assembly,” he said.

Terming the development as a gross injustice to Punjab, Badal said “Chandigarh is an inalienable part of Punjab. It was carved out by uprooting Punjabi speaking villages of Kharar tehsil. Punjab’s right over Chandigarh was ratified by the Punjab Reorganization Act, 1966 and later by way of the Rajiv-Longowal accord which was ratified by parliament”.

The SAD president said it was also an established precedent that whenever a state was divided the capital evolved to the parent State. “This decision is also against the spirit of federalism and so discriminatory towards Punjab,” he added.

Badal said in such a situation Haryana did not have any locus standi to demand land in the UT for a separate Assembly and should construct its assembly building in its own state.

He said Punjabis were already hurt that the Central government had failed to transfer Chandigarh to Punjab for decades. “Now Punjabis will justly feel further aggrieved that Central government has decided to further dilute Punjab’s right over Chandigarh at the cost of Haryana. This is bound to vitiate the atmosphere in the State and could have dangerous repercussions by spoiling the peace in the border state”.

Telling the Central government to reconsider its decision immediately, Mr Badal said the SAD on its part was committed to opposing this insidious agenda in keeping with the sentiments of Punjabis who would never accept this decision.