Chandigarh, Nov 22: The Union Government has listed a Constitution amendment Bill for introduction in Parliament’s upcoming winter session that could alter the administrative structure of Chandigarh, prompting immediate political opposition in Punjab. The proposal aims to empower the President of India to frame rules for the Union Territory and potentially appoint a Lieutenant Governor to head its administration.
According to the tentative legislative agenda, the Constitution (131st Amendment) Bill, 2025, will seek inclusion of Chandigarh under Article 240, bringing it at par with Union Territories without legislatures, such as Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Lakshadweep, Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu, and Puducherry when its Assembly stands suspended.
Rajya Sabha member from Punjab, Vikramjit Singh Sahney, was the first to publicly oppose the planned legislation on Saturday. He urged MPs from Punjab across party lines to take up the matter urgently with Union Home Minister Amit Shah.
“This is a very serious development. Chandigarh is presently administered by the Governor of Punjab, but with this Bill the city may soon have an independent administrator,” Sahney said. He mentioned that the law would effectively align Chandigarh’s governance with that of Lakshadweep and other Union Territories, removing Punjab’s institutional link.
Sahney said the legislation would strike at the historical understanding under which Chandigarh was created. He noted, “The city became Punjab’s capital after Partition, when Lahore went to Pakistan. Later, following the 1966 reorganisation, it was designated capital of both Punjab and Haryana.”
He argued that the Centre had on multiple occasions committed to handing Chandigarh exclusively to Punjab, citing successive accords. “I request all MPs from Punjab to immediately call upon the Home Minister and discuss the issue,” he said.
The move comes days after the Centre withdrew a contentious notification concerning Panjab University’s governance structure. It also follows last week’s Northern Zonal Council meeting, during which Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann pressed the Centre again for Chandigarh’s transfer to Punjab.
