AAP walks out over liquor corp bill rejection
CHANDIGARH: The opposition Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Wednesday protested against the speaker’s decision to reject a private member’s bill on a liquor corporation in the state on “technical grounds”.
Sunam MLA Aman Arora raised the issue during the zero hour, stating that his private member’s bill “Punjab State Liquor Corporation Bill, 2019” was rejected on Tuesday on grounds that it had not been submitted 15 days in advance. “The 15-day period completed today whereas the bill is to come up on Thursday, the day fixed for nonofficial business. The condition has been met,” he said in the House, urging speaker Rana KP Singh to allow it.
Arora had submitted the “Punjab State Liquor Corporation Bill, 2019” to the speaker for introduction during the budget session, stating that it was aimed at curbing the activities of liquor mafia allegedly enjoying political patronage in the state.
Arora said there has been repeated talk of empty coffers whereas as the state was losing revenue of ₹5,000 crore due to smuggling of liquor worth ₹10,000 each year. When Rana KP said he would have the matter examined, Arora asked what was there to examine. “If there is nothing to be examined, then it has been rejected,” the speaker snapped.
Upset over the rejection, the AAP MLAs led by leader of opposition and Dirba MLA Harpal Singh Cheema rushed to the well of the House and started raising anti-government slogans. They kept urging the speaker to allow the bill and staged a symbolic walkout to register their protest.
Arora later said finance minister Manpreet Singh Badal was struggling for funds, but the government was merely twiddling its thumbs and not been able to maximise revenue from liquor. Before the day’s proceedings began, AAP members had also held a protest outside the state assembly on the issue of proliferation of mafias in the state. Raising anti-government slogans, they alleged that the sand, liquor and transport mafias were flourishing in the state under the Congress rule.
During the zero hour, Cheema also stressed the need for measures to tackle drug smuggling, requesting the state government to file a special petition in the court for making public a “sealed” report submitted by DG-rank officer SS Chattopadhyaya on drug lords. “There is a need to bring out the names of the big fish in the drug trafficking business and bring them to justice,” he said.
Nihal Singh Wala MLA Manjit Singh Bilaspur also raised the issue of ETT, BEd and TET qualified teachers, who had been sitting on dharna in Sangrur since long. “The government should address their issues by creating jobs,” he said.
‘WILL CONTINUE FIGHT AGAINST DGP, MINISTER’
Leader of opposition Harpal Singh Cheema said on Wednesday said the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) will continue its fight for action against director general of police Dinkar Gupta and food and civil supplies minister Bharat Bhushan Ashu.