AAP govt’s four years marked by broken promises, governance failures: Bajwa

On the government’s claims of making Punjab drug-free, Bajwa said the promises made by Mann and AAP national convenor Arvind Kejriwal have failed to translate into real results.

Congress leader Partap Singh Bajwa Monday, accused Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann of attempting to mislead the people through exaggerated claims about the performance of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government during its four years in power.

“The reality is that the AAP government has delivered one of the most disappointing tenures Punjab has witnessed in recent times,” the Leader of the Opposition in the Punjab Assembly said.

He said the press conference held by Mann to highlight the government’s achievements was nothing more than a publicity exercise aimed at masking the administration’s serious shortcomings.

He alleged that the law and order situation in Punjab has deteriorated, and incidents of organised crime, extortion threats to businessmen, attacks on police stations and political leaders, and other criminal activities have increased during the past four years.

“Punjab has rarely seen such a breakdown in law and order.

Instead of ensuring security and stability, the government has allowed criminal elements to grow more confident,” Bajwa said.

On the government’s claims of making Punjab drug-free, Bajwa said the promises made by Mann and AAP national convenor Arvind Kejriwal have failed to translate into real results.

“Drug abuse continues to destroy families across the state, and young lives are still being lost to overdose while the government remains busy projecting an image of success,” he said.

He also dismissed the government’s claims of strengthening the public healthcare system.

He claimed that government hospitals are facing a severe shortage of specialists, with nearly half of the sanctioned specialist doctor posts lying vacant.

“People are forced to turn to private hospitals for treatment,” he said, while alleging that the announcement of providing free treatment up to Rs 10 lakh was misleading.

According to Bajwa, the scheme offers coverage only for a limited number of pre-approved treatment packages with a fixed cap, which cannot be described as universal free healthcare.

Criticising the ‘Sikhya Kranti’, Bajwa said the government has focused on cosmetic changes rather than substantive reforms in the education sector.

He claimed that of 1,927 sanctioned principal posts in Senior Secondary Schools, 984 are vacant, while nearly one-third of headmaster positions are also unfilled.

Raising concerns about Punjab’s financial health, Bajwa said the state is sliding deeper into a fiscal crisis due to the AAP government’s borrowing policies.

He said the state’s debt could cross Rs 4.17 lakh crore and reach Rs 4.5 lakh crore by 2026–27.

“Instead of strengthening revenue generation and ensuring fiscal prudence, the government is relying heavily on loans, pushing Punjab into a deeper debt trap,” he said.

Targeting the government over the delayed implementation of the financial assistance scheme for women, Bajwa said the announcement of Rs 1,000 per month has come at the tail end of the government’s tenure.

“This clearly reflects political opportunism,” he added.

“The people of Punjab can clearly see through these attempts at image-building.

What they expect from a government is accountability, effective governance, and tangible results — all of which have been missing over the past four years,” Bajwa said.

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