The Central Government has proposed to introduce the Constitution (131st Amendment) Bill, 2025 to change the administrative status of Chandigarh. This move has drawn strong reaction from all the parties across Punjab including Aam Aadmi Party, Congress and Shiromani Akali Dal.
Direct control under Article 240
The main objective of this bill is to bring the Union Territory of Chandigarh under the ambit of Article 240 of the Constitution.
Article 240 empowers the President to directly make rules and enact laws for Union Territories like Chandigarh, which has the same power as Parliament to legislate.
After this amendment, Chandigarh will become like other union territories (like Lakshadweep, Andaman and Nicobar) without an assembly. This would give the President the power to make rules for the city and perhaps appoint an independent administrator. Currently, the administration of Chandigarh is handled by the Governor of Punjab, this system is in force since 1984.
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Political reaction of Punjab
All the political parties of Punjab have called this proposal an attack on the rights of Punjab and a conspiracy to snatch the capital.
Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann called the move a ‘huge injustice’ and alleged that the NDA government at the Center was conspiring to ‘capture’ the Punjab capital.
Aam Aadmi Party convenor Arvind Kejriwal said the decision ‘breaks the federal structure’ and is an attack on the constitutional rights of Punjab. He reiterated firmly, ‘Chandigarh belongs to Punjab and will always remain Punjab’.
Sukhbir Singh Badal termed the law as a ‘direct attack on the rights of Punjab’ and accused the Center of cheating. He reminded that the Center had agreed to hand over Chandigarh to Punjab way back in 1970, but the promise was never fulfilled.
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Congress’s Amarinder Singh Raja Waring described the move as ‘completely unnecessary’ and warned that ‘snatching’ Chandigarh from Punjab would have ‘serious consequences’. Congress has vowed to strongly oppose the bill in Parliament.
The Overseas Punjabi Association has also described the proposal as insensitive to Punjab’s historical claims on Chandigarh. All the parties of Punjab have said in one voice that Chandigarh is the rightful capital of Punjab and they will oppose the Constitution (131st Amendment) Bill on every front.