Chandigarh: Seeking breath analyser and dope tests of all members, including Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, pandemonium prevailed in the Assembly at its special one-day session on Friday to mark International Labour Day, with the main Opposition Congress MLAs staging a walkout after heated exchanges over conduct inside the House with treasury benches.
Leader of Opposition Partap Singh Bajwa demanded a closed-door alcohol test on all MLAs in the Vidhan Sabha after allegations of Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann appearing drunk inside the House.
The Congress alleged that questions had been raised about the conduct and physical condition of members during proceedings and insisted that medical verification was necessary to maintain transparency and accountability in the House.
Following the walkout, several Congress MLAs reportedly entered the Speaker’s office, pressing their demand for an “alcometer” test of all legislators, further escalating tensions inside the Assembly complex.
Heated arguments were witnessed, with the Opposition blamed for disrupting proceedings and lowering the dignity of the House.
The Speaker had to intervene on several occasions to maintain decorum.
Tensions rose when Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann objected to Congress MLA Sukhpal Singh Khaira’s conduct during proceedings, leading to disruptions and heated exchanges between the treasury and the opposition benches.
Finance Minister Harpal Cheema told the media that Congress’ allegations that Chief Minister Mann was drunk were totally false. “A few days ago, a complaint was filed against him (Khaira) and a report subsequently surfaced, accusing him of illegally encroaching upon Panchayat land,” he said, citing the reason for the accusation by the Opposition.
Later, in a letter to the Speaker, Bajwa, on behalf of the Congress Legislative Party (CLP), drew his “immediate attention to a matter of grave concern affecting the dignity and decorum of this august House”.
“An incident that occurred today during the ongoing session, as raised by MLA Sukhpal Singh Khaira, brought forth serious concerns regarding the conduct of the Chief Minister, who left the House without replying to allegations made by the member. The nature of these concerns is deeply troubling and, if left unaddressed, risks undermining public trust in this esteemed institution,” he wrote.
Bajwa demanded that it should be made mandatory for alcometer testing of all members present in the House, beginning with the Chief Minister, within one hour and comprehensive dope testing of all MLAs, across both treasury and opposition benches, without exception.
Joining the issue, Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) in a post on X said, “It is a matter of great shame that Chief Minister of Punjab Bhagwant Mann showed up drunk with alcohol in the hallowed chamber of the Vidhan Sabha on the occasion of ‘Labour Day’ today! You can see for yourselves how the Chief Minister is behaving in the Vidhan Sabha.”
The Akali Dal condemned the Chief Minister’s conduct, and said that he should not have come after drinking on this day and demanded that the Chief Minister undergo a dope test.
State working BJP President Ashwani Sharma in his X post wrote, “On a solemn occasion like Labour Day, in a specially convened session, Chief Minister @BhagwantMann-ji’s faltering tongue is revealing a harsh truth. Such a grave insult to the dignity of the sacred legislative Assembly and to the office of the Chief Minister has never been witnessed before. Punjab cannot function like this.”
(IANS)
