CHANDIGARH: The controversy over the Rangla Punjab Society and its fund for flood relief, announced by Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, reverberated in the Punjab Vidhan Sabha on the opening day of the session. Leader of Opposition Partap Singh Bajwa raised serious doubts about the legitimacy of the society and expressed fears that the funds collected could be misappropriated by the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government.
Bajwa appealed to the people of Punjab not to contribute to the Rangla Punjab Society. Instead, he urged citizens to extend help directly to flood-hit families or donate through the Chief Minister’s Relief Fund, which already exists for such emergencies. “When the CM’s Relief Fund is in place, what is the need for creating a parallel fund under the Rangla Punjab Society?” Bajwa asked. He likened the move to the Prime Minister’s CARES Fund, which remains outside the ambit of auditing, and warned that such funds lack transparency. He expressed concern that contributions under the Rangla Punjab Society could be diverted for purposes other than flood relief.
Defending the initiative, Chief Minister Mann asserted that the Rangla Punjab Society was a fully official and transparent effort. He said that daily updates on collections are being shared with the public and assured that every rupee will be spent for the welfare and rehabilitation of flood-affected people.. He called Bajwa anti-Punjab.