Chandigarh, Oct 22: The opening day of the six-day Punjab Vidhan Sabha session concluded within ten minutes on Thursday, as Speaker Kultar Singh Sandhwan abruptly adjourned proceedings until Friday. Although non-official business was originally listed following obituary references, the session was cut short after the House observed formal tributes.
Lawmakers paid respects to eight victims of a recent road accident in Sangrur, former minister Chuni Lal Bhagat, former MP Varinder Singh Bajwa, former MLA Ranjit Singh, physician Rattan Lal Mittal, and the mother of MLA Manjit Singh Bilaspur. However, proceedings grew tense when opposition Congress representatives demanded that anti-drug activist Bikramjit Singh and another citizen who died by suicide be included in the obituary references, a request that was ultimately not considered by the chair.
Political observers noted that the brief opening foreshadows an intensely confrontational legislative period. The Opposition is prepared to aggressively corner the ruling Aam Aadmi Party government over the escalating drug trade, the killing of anti-drug activist Parvinder Singh Jhota, prevailing law and order concerns, and various corruption allegations. In response, the administration is anticipated to deflect scrutiny by holding previous regimes accountable for the drug menace while shifting focus toward central security agencies regarding narcotics inflow through distant ports and international borders.
