Punjab Assembly special sessions against BJP-led Centre come under attack from Opposition MLAs, say they’re unable to raise issues of their constituencies

Holding the Centre responsible, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann accused it of favouring BJP-ruled Haryana at the cost of Punjab’s farmers (File Photo)

Ever since the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Government assumed office in Punjab in 2022, it has held special sessions of the Vidhan Sabha largely to attack the BJP-led Centre and its policies. In its latest such exercise, the fifth special session held on December 30, the Assembly adopted a resolution against the Centre’s Viksit Bharat–G Ram G scheme, which dismantled the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MNREGA).

All five special sessions convened so far have carried confidence motions and resolutions directly criticising the BJP or the Centre. However, the Opposition has trained guns on the AAP Government for organising single-day sessions and not allowing them to raise issues of their constituencies.

Leader of the Opposition Pratap Singh Bajwa, BJP state president Sunil Jakhar, and Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) chief Sukhbir Singh Badal have questioned the need to repeatedly bypass regular Assembly sittings in favour of special sessions, especially when the outcomes remain largely symbolic.

The first special session, convened in June 2022, saw a confidence motion as AAP alleged that at least 10 AAP MLAs were approached by the BJP under its “Operation Lotus” with an offer of Rs 25 crore to each of them in a bid to topple the six-month-old Punjab government.

A subsequent special session was called over the Bhakra Beas Management Board’s (BBMB) decision to release Punjab’s share of water to Haryana. Holding the Centre responsible, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann accused it of favouring BJP-ruled Haryana at the cost of Punjab’s farmers. The resolution was aimed at positioning the Punjab government as a defender of farmers’ interests while sharpening its confrontation with New Delhi.

In September 2025, another special session was convened in the aftermath of floods triggered by heavy rainfall. The role of central agencies, particularly the BBMB, came under scrutiny, with the Assembly adopting a resolution blaming the Centre’s negligence for the losses suffered by Punjab.

A separate special session on November 24 marked the 350th martyrdom anniversary of Sri Guru Tegh Bahadur. It was held at Sri Anandpur Sahib instead of the Vidhan Sabha complex, a first for the state.

The December 30 session brought the focus back to employment and welfare. The Assembly unanimously passed a resolution alleging that the Centre was “snatching away the rights of the poor, Dalits and labourers” by phasing out MGNREGA through the VB-G Ram G Act. Mann described the legislation as anti-Dalit and anti-poor. While the Congress and SAD supported the resolution, the BJP dismissed it as an attempt to shield corruption.

Congress member Sukhpal Singh Khaira raised it in the House on Tuesday that the special sessions were becoming the order of the day and the legislators were not able to raise the issues faced by their constituencies.

The standoff, in the past, had also sharpened Centre–state tensions spilling over into an unprecedented confrontation between the chief minister and former Governor Banwarilal Purohit that eventually reached the Supreme Court.

Leader of Opposition Partap Singh Bajwa accused the government of wasting money on special sessions and not organising regular sessions. Mann accused Bajwa of going against the “rights of poor and Dalits and calling this session a wastage of money.”