Centre proposes Bill to take control over Chandigarh by appointing an L-G; AAP, Cong oppose move

The Bill seeks to include Chandigarh in Article 240 of the Constitution of India, in alignment with other UTs without legislatures such as Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Lakshadweep, Dadra & Nagar Haveli and Daman & Diu, and Puducherry (when its Legislative Assembly is dissolved or suspended).

This could result in UT of Chandigarh having an independent administrator. Currently Punjab Governor also holds the additional charge as the Administrator of UT of Chandigarh.

Beginning November 1, 1966, when Punjab was reorganised, Chandigarh was administered independently by the chief secretary. However, since June 1, 1984, Chandigarh has been administered by the Punjab Governor and the chief secretary’s position was converted to Adviser to UT Administrator.

In August 2016, the Centre had sought to restore the earlier practice of having an independent administrator by appointing former IAS officer K J Alphons to the top post. However, then Punjab government, led by Parkash Singh Badal, whose Shiromani Akali Dal was an ally of the BJP and a part of the NDA, and other parties including the Congress and AAP had opposed the move.

The Centre’s latest move comes days after Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, during the recent meeting of the Northern Zonal Council in Faridabad, reiterated Punjab’s claim on Chandigarh and demanded its immediate transfer.

In a post on X, Mann said the the propssed amendment is against the interests of Punjab. “We will not allow the conspiracy to succeed. Chandigarh, built by uprooting the villages of Punjab, belongs solely to Punjab. We will not let our right slip away…we will take whatever steps are necessary,” he said.

In a statement, AAP’s Rajya Sabha member Vikramjit Singh Sahney said, “With the new law, Chandigarh is likely to be administered by an independent administrator. It would have similar administration rules such as Lakshadweep and others”.

He said Chandigarh was historically Punjab’s. “Chandigarh was made capital of Punjab after partition as the then capital, Lahore, went to Pakistan. After reorganisation in 1966, it was made joint capital of Punjab and Harayana. Then under mutiple accords, Centre promised to make Chandigarh the exclusive capital of Punjab,” he said.

AAP MP Malvinder Singh Kang, said, “The ink on the wounds from the Centre’s assault on Panjab University has not yet dried, and already another blow has been struck. This is not reform, this is daylight robbery. This moment demands unity. Every MP from Punjab, across political lines, must stand together, forge a common front, and defeat this amendment…History will not forgive those who choose silence.”

He said the Centre’s overreach strikes at the very core of India’s federal spirit. “If Chandigarh is taken today, what safeguard remains for any state tomorrow? Chandigarh was born from Punjab’s sacrifices in 1966 and nurtured as our capital for generations. It is a city we built, brick by brick. “

Punjab Congress president Amrinder Singh Raja Warring said, “Chandigarh belongs to Punjab and any attempt to snatch it away will have serious repercussions”. He urged CM Mann to immediately take up the matter with the Centre “to nip the proposal, if any, in the bud before it is too late”.

Warring said that successive governments at the Centre have committed and reiterated that Chandigarh belongs exclusively to Punjab “and delay in getting it transferred to its parent state in no way weakens Punjab’s case and cause”.

Leader of the Opposition in Punjab Vidhan Sabha, Partap Singh Bajwa, called for unity across state’s political spectrum warning that the Bill proposed by “the BJP-led Union Government is a clear attempt to weaken Punjab’s historical, constitutional, and emotional claim over its own capital”.

Calling the move “yet another assault on Punjab,” Bajwa accused the Centre of persistently eroding the state’s rights—whether on Chandigarh, river waters, or Panjab University.

“The BJP-led Union Government’s anti-Punjab agenda is now out in the open. Because Punjabis do not elect the BJP, the Centre seems intent on penalising the state. This mindset is discriminatory, divisive, and completely unacceptable,” he said.

“The time has come again for Punjabis to rise above party lines and defend their rightful capital. Our response must be united, firm, and unequivocal,” he added.

He also criticised the AAP government, saying that in its three and a half year rule, it has “failed to safeguard Punjab’s fundamental interests,” allowing repeated intrusions on the state’s constitutional, political, and cultural rights.

Art 240 of the Constitution
Article 240 of the Constitution grants the power to the president to make regulations for certain Union territories for the peace, progress and effective governance of the Union territory of the Andaman & Nicobar Islands; Lakshadweep; Dadra & Nagar Haveli and Daman & Diu and Puducherry.

However, when a body is created under article 239A to function as a legislature for a Union territory (as is the case in Puducherry), the president shall not make any regulation with effect from the day of the first meeting of the legislature.

Any regulation so made may repeal or amend any Act made by Parliament or any other law, which is for the time being is applicable to the Union territory and, when promulgated by the president, shall have the same force and effect as an Act of Parliament which applies to that territory.