Faced with a political storm in poll-bound Punjab, the central government was on Wednesday forced to rethink its decision to appoint former Rajya Sabha MP V P Singh Badnore as Governor of the state, but not give him the added responsibility of Administrator of the Union Territory of Chandigarh — as is the norm.
Amid reports that former IAS officer and BJP leader Alphons Kannanthanam could be appointed Administrator of Chandigarh, and under attack from the Congress and the AAP, Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal approached the Prime Minister and the Home Minister. He opposed any plans for a separate Chandigarh Administrator as that could deal a blow to his party’s prospects in the assembly polls.
Talking to The Indian Express, Alphons admitted to the rethink by the Centre, saying, “I got a call from BJP chief Amit Shah that Punjab… Congress and all… have raised certain issues with my appointment so they are holding it back.”
Asked whether he was given any time period for which the appointment was being withheld, Alphons said, “No, he did not say anything about how long they are withholding my orders.”
Speaking to The Indian Express earlier, Alphons had said that Home MinisterRajnath Singh had informed him about his appointment as Administrator of Chandigarh. “The Home Minister asked me to take charge immediately. I will be going there next week,” he told The Indian Express earlier.
Earlier in the day, the Congress and the AAP slammed the ruling Shiromani Akali Dal for remaining silent on the central government move. Punjab Congress chief Capt Amarinder Singh said the “blatantly unjust move” was aimed at “snatching” Chandigarh away from Punjab.
Indicating that Badal had received an assurance from the Centre, late Wednesday evening he withdrew a media statement asking the Centre “not to disturb the time-tested convention and practice of keeping the Governor of Punjab as the Administrator of the UT of Chandigarh”. The statement had further alleged that the Centre’s move “violates the basis under which the arrangement was originally made, which was that Chandigarh belongs to Punjab and has to be transferred to it”.
A fresh statement from Badal said he had asked the Centre to “review and revise its decision”. “Let no one try to create any confusion on the claim of Punjab on Chandigarh in the minds of people of Punjab or elsewhere… Punjab will never allow its legitimate right over the capital and other Punjabi speaking areas to be compromised or diluted”.
Sources in the SAD said Rajnath had assured Badal that the office of the Chandigarh Administrator will remain with Badnore.
The Punjab Governor has held the additional office of Chandigarh Administrator since June 1984. The arrangement had been put in place due to the disturbed conditions in Punjab at the time and its spillover effect in Chandigarh. The arrangement continued even after the disturbed area tag was removed.
The BJP, the SAD’s junior partner in the state’s ruling coalition, remained mum on the issue even as the Congress and the AAP stepped up their attack.
Asking Badal to clarify his stand on the issue, Congress’s Amarinder Singh said, “You either make the central government, of which your party is an important constituent, rescind the move or you withdraw your daughter-in-law Ms Harsimrat Kaur Badal from the council of ministers.”
AAP MP Bhagwant Mann said the SAD should break all ties with the BJP, and the CM and Harsimrat Badal should hand in their resignations. “The Badals have sacrificed Chandigarh in lieu of their personal gains,” he said.
Haryana Governor Kaptan Singh Solanki had been holding additional charge of Punjab since the previous incumbent, Shivraj Patil, demitted office in January 2015.
A formal announcement on Alphons’s appointment would have meant the UT of Chandigarh would have had a separate Administrator after a gap of 32 years. When Haryana was carved out of Punjab in 1966, both Punjab and Haryana claimed Chandigarh as the new city for its capital. Pending resolution of the issue, the Centre made Chandigarh a UT, with its administration functioning directly under the Centre.
The practice of appointing an Administrator of the UT, designated as ‘Chief Commissioner’, continued up to May 31, 1984. Thereafter, on June 1, 1984, the Governor of Punjab took over as Administrator of the UT. ‘Chief Commissioner’ was redesignated as ‘Adviser to the Administrator’.
[Source:The Indian Express]
