NEW DELHI: The Haryana Congress on Monday dubbed the resolution passed by the Punjab assembly on transfer of Chandigarh to the state as a "political gimmick" and decided to meet the president, prime minister and Haryana governor over the issue.
The decision was taken at a meeting of the Haryana Congress Legislature Party (CLP) at the Haryana Bhawan in Delhi, where leaders said Chandigarh belongs to Haryana and will remain so.
The Union Territory of Chandigarh is the common capital of Punjab and Haryana.
The meeting was chaired by CLP leader and former Haryana chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda and was attended by around 25 leaders of the party's state unit.
"We have seen and discussed the resolution passed in the Punjab assembly regarding Chandigarh, which we strongly oppose as Chandigarh belongs to Haryana," Hooda told PTI after the meeting.
"The resolution passed in Punjab's assembly is merely a political gimmick and the same has no meaning or standing," he said.
Hooda said Congress' leaders from Haryana will first meet the Haryana governor against this move and later the prime minister and the president.
He said the party has sought time from the Haryana governor.
"Chandigarh belongs to Haryana and the Shah Commission has already given Chandigarh to Haryana.
There are separate issues of disputes -- water, territory and the capital, and of these getting water for Haryana is our first priority," he said.
Chandgarh already is the capital of Haryana and some territories need to be transferred to Haryana, for which the Haryana Congress will continue its protest.
Several legislators were also part of the meet at the Haryana Bhawan.
Rajya Sabha MP Deepinder Singh Hooda had also earlier moved an adjournment motion in the Upper House of Parliament to discuss the issue, but the same was rejected by Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu.
In his notice, Hooda said the Punjab resolution is a "gross violation of the Punjab Reorganisation Act of 1966 and this act of Punjab is likely to disturb the peace, harmony and stability in the entire region".
He also claimed that "the rightful claim of Haryana over the UT of Chandigarh and its rightful share of river waters is legally entitled and protection under the Constitution".
Ahead of a special session of the Haryana assembly, Congress leader Navjot Singh Sidhu on Monday asserted that Chandigarh always belonged to Punjab while his party colleague Sunil Jakhar said the "lost cause" will only create acrimony between the two states.
The Haryana government has summoned a special session of the assembly here on Tuesday, days after the Punjab assembly passed a resolution seeking immediate transfer of Chandigarh to the AAP-ruled state.
Haryana leaders have been demanding the completion of the Sutlej-Yamuna Link canal for getting the state's river water share from Punjab.
They have also sought the transfer of 400 Hindi-speaking villages to Haryana.
Asserting that Chandigarh belongs to Punjab and will always remain so, former Punjab Congress chief Sidhu also predicted that its next big battle with Haryana will be over river waters.
Referring to the Haryana assembly's special session, Sidhu's predecessor Sunil Jakhar, in a separate tweet, said the brotherhood between the people of Punjab and Haryana will be the "first casualty" of the "rising tempers" over the "lost cause" of Chandigarh.
The Union Territory of Chandigarh is the common capital of Punjab and Haryana.
Earlier in a tweet in Hindu, Sidhu said that built on 27 villages of Punjab, Chandigarh belonged to Punjab and will remain so.
"Kahin pe nigahein, kahin pe nishana," Sidhu tweeted, suggesting that the real target for Haryana was not Chandigarh, but the river waters.
Chandigarh is just an excuse, the target is Punjab's river waters.
Beware the next big battle is for the river waters of Punjab, he said.
Sidhu, who lost during the recent Punjab assembly elections from Amritsar East, also tagged AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal, state Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann and Haryana CM Manohar Lal Khattar with his tweet.
The SYL canal issue has been a bone of contention between Punjab and Haryana for several decades.
In the past, Punjab had been demanding a reassessment of its share of the Ravi-Beas river waters while Haryana had been seeking completion of the SYL canal to get its share of 3.5 million acre-feet (MAF) of water.
The Punjab government's move to bring a resolution in the state assembly came in the wake of the Centre's announcement that the Central Service Rules will apply to the employees of the Union Territory of Chandigarh.
Dubbing Chandigarh as a "lost cause", Jakhar in a tweet apprehended that the brotherhood between the people of two neighbouring state will be the "first casualty" of the "rising tempers" over it.
He also posted a picture of a short story of two fighting cats and a monkey, seeking to give a message of someone else's gain during a quarrel between the two.
"The camaraderie, the brotherhood between people of Pb/Hry, reinforced at Singhu/Tikri borders, will be the 1st casualty of rising tempers & acrimony over the 'lost cause' of Chandigarh as Haryana too convenes a special session, to give a 'befitting reply' to Punjab."
"And winner is" , said Jakhar in a tweet.
Notably, farmers from Punjab and Haryana had camped at Singhu and Tikri borders near Delhi for more than a year to protest against the Centre's now-repealed three farm laws.