Chandigarh, March 10 The Punjab Assembly on Tuesday witnessed heated exchanges between AAP and Congress legislators, after Leader of the Opposition Partap Singh Bajwa objected to Cabinet Minister Aman Arora's intervention while Health Minister Balbir Singh was answering a question.
Arora, along with Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema and other AAP MLAs, even rushed to the well of the House in protest.
The verbal duel began after Bajwa objected to Arora's intervention when the health minister was replying to his question on government medical colleges.
Bajwa's question was pointed, targeting the Bhagwant Mann government for not setting up any of the 16 medical colleges promised in its first Budget.
In his reply, Balbir Singh said that seven medical colleges are in the pipeline, including government medical colleges at Hoshiarpur and Kapurthala with assistance from the Indian government, medical colleges at Sangrur and Nawanshahr under the public-private partnership (PPP) model, the JIS Medical College and Hospital in Ludhiana district, a private sector initiative, a minority medical college at Lehragaga for the Jain community, and a medical college at Malerkotla with assistance from the Centre under the Pradhan Mantri Jan Vikas Karyakram.
Reacting to Singh's reply, Bajwa said, “We asked about government colleges, but he is replying about private colleges. Work has not started on even a single government college.”
"Don't deceive the people of Punjab," Bajwa told the health minister.
Singh replied that the state government is facilitating private colleges.
In the meantime, Arora rose from his seat to speak on the matter, with Bajwa strongly objecting to this intervention.
"How can Aman Arora stand up? He is not the health minister. He may be the party president… But how can he stand up? This is against parliamentary rules," Bajwa told Speaker Kultar Singh Sandhwan.
It is the health minister who should reply, he added.
The speaker replied that he can allow anyone to speak. Citing the Constitution, Sandhwan pointed out that the Council of Ministers is collectively responsible to the Assembly.
However, Bajwa continued to question Arora’s attempt to intervene.
Stating that the Qadian MLA (Bajwa) cannot dictate to him, Arora said, "I can speak. I am a part of the government, and I can also put forth my views. Will you tell who can speak?”
Both Bajwa and Arora continued to argue despite the speaker urging them to sit down and let the Question Hour continue.
“We are speaking with folded hands, but this is not the way,” Arora said as he targeted the Congress, claiming that it promised to set up five medical colleges in 2017 but failed to construct any.
“Can they question us now?” he said.
Arora, along with Cheema and some other AAP MLAs, then rushed to the well of the House, with the finance minister accusing Bajwa of hurling abuses and demanding an apology.
As tempers ran high, the speaker banged his gavel to restore order in the House.
Amid heated exchanges between the treasury benches and Congress legislators, the speaker kept pleading with them to go back and sit in their seats.
Congress MLA Avtar Singh Junior was seen trying to calm down Arora.