CHANDIGARH: Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president Sukhbir Singh Badal today dodged a query on the possibility of a re-alliance between the SAD and the BJP ahead of the 2027 Punjab Assembly elections and challenged Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann and AAP national convenor Arvind Kejriwal to a public debate on alleged paper leaks and the recruitment of candidates from outside Punjab.
The Congress and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) also slammed the AAP government over the issue.
Sukhbir Singh Badal, who had come to address a protest organised by the party’s student wing, Students’ Organisation of India (SOI), over alleged paper leaks in Punjab outside the District Administrative Complex (DAC) in Bathinda, said that he had approached Prime Minister Narendra Modi to discuss major issues facing the state and urged him to find ways to save Punjab. He further said that the state was facing many issues.
“I went to request the PM Modi that somehow Punjab should be saved as AAP have destroyed the state. The law and order situation in the state has deteriorated, many paper leaks have taken place and AAP is looting Punjab,” he alleged.
He challenged Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann and AAP national convenor Arvind Kejriwal to a public debate over issues related to the alleged paper leaks and the recruitment of candidates from outside the state, claiming that ten papers had been leaked during the tenure of the AAP government. Badal said he challenged both Mann and Kejriwal to debate the issue with him.
“Do the children of Punjab not belong to you? If you have the courage, choose any place and I will come there to explain how paper leaks happened under your government, how candidates from outside Punjab were given government jobs, and how the youngsters of Punjab were ignored. I am ready to put every issue before the people of Punjab and answer every question. Choose the place and time, I am ready for the debate,” he said.
He also questioned Kejriwal, “Ten papers were leaked during your (AAP) government, will Kejriwal sit on a 'dharna'?”
The protesters demanded the resignation of State Education Minister Harjot Singh Bains, a CBI probe into alleged paper leaks during the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government, and a court monitored inquiry into allegations of jobs being given to candidates from outside Punjab.
Sukhbir also claimed that decisions taken by the AAP government would be reviewed once the SAD forms the state government and that those responsible would face inquiries.
When asked about CM Mann's request to Punjab Governor Gulab Chand Kataria to grant Jagtar Singh Hawara 10 day parole on humanitarian grounds, he said, “Then why did he write against it just four months ago?”
On Sukhbir’s meeting with Prime Minister Modi, Harsimrat Kaur Badal, Sukhbir Singh Badal’s wife and Member of Parliament from Bathinda, also avoided the question outside Parliament House in Delhi. She said that the meeting was not held with her and that the person with whom the meeting took place could only answer the query.
It is not just Sukhbir Badal who challenged the AAP government over paper leaks in the state. Responding to Punjab CM Mann’s allegations about a paper leak gang in Haryana, Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini said that if the Punjab Chief Minister genuinely believed that a paper leak gang was operating in Bhiwani, the Punjab Government should get its own police to take action.
“If you believe there is a paper leak gang operating in Bhiwani, why does the Punjab Government not take action through its own police?” he questioned.
Saini said allegations without facts and political statements without evidence were neither appropriate nor responsible.
Senior Shiromani Akali Dal leader and former Education Minister of Punjab, Dr Daljit Singh Cheema, said that Punjab was facing a serious employment and service related crisis under the AAP government, with both serving employees and unemployed youth struggling with unresolved issues.
He said that those already in government service were fighting for their legitimate rights, while a large number of unemployed youth were waiting for a fair, transparent and reliable recruitment system. He demanded that the AAP government immediately issue a comprehensive White Paper on Punjab’s employment and recruitment situation.
Former Punjab Deputy Chief Minister and sitting Member of Parliament from Gurdaspur, Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa, slammed the state government over the appointment of candidates from Haryana as multi purpose health workers by the Health Department.
Randhawa said the issue had further intensified the growing anxiety among Punjab’s youth over employment opportunities in government departments. He asserted that the Punjab government must ensure that the rights and interests of the state’s youth were protected and that recruitment processes remained completely transparent, fair and impartial.
“Punjab’s youth work hard for years to prepare for competitive examinations and government jobs. If candidates from neighbouring states are allowed to take away employment opportunities in Punjab, what is left for the youth of Punjab?” Randhawa asked.
Randhawa also demanded an independent and high level investigation into the recruitment examinations and selection processes conducted by or associated with Baba Farid University of Health Sciences.
He said allegations of cheating and the use of Bluetooth devices during the Pharmacist Officer recruitment examination had already raised serious questions about the credibility and integrity of the recruitment system.