CHANDIGARH: Punjab Bharatiya Janata Party State Working President Ashwani Sharma launched a sharp attack on Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema, stating that the Mann government is trying to influence Panchayats misleadingly by claiming the Finance Commission grants coming from the Centre as its own achievement.
He said that Harpal Singh Cheema’s announcement regarding the release of a “historic grant” of ₹332 crore is nothing but an attempt to mislead the public, as this entire amount is actually a tranche of the 15th Finance Commission issued by the Central Government, which routinely goes to the Panchayats.
Sharma said that the Finance Commission’s grants are released by the Centre through a standard procedure in which the Punjab government has no authority, discretion, or interference. These grants reach each Panchayat based on village population and a fixed formula, and the state government has no right to discriminate in this process. He added that the state government is trying to take false credit by presenting the Centre’s grants as its own.
– Actual distribution list of the ₹332 crore also released:
According to figures released by Ashwani Sharma, this tranche of the Finance Commission has already been disbursed to various District Councils across Punjab, including— Amritsar: ₹10.64 crore, Barnala: ₹3.75 crore, Bathinda: ₹7.74 crore, Faridkot: ₹3.70 crore, Fatehgarh Sahib: ₹3.64 crore, Fazilka: ₹17.57 crore, Ferozepur: ₹15.77 crore, Gurdaspur: ₹27.63 crore, Hoshiarpur: ₹28.52 crore, Jalandhar: ₹23.23 crore. He added that other districts, too, have received funds in a similar manner.
Sharma questioned how the Punjab government can present this grant as its own achievement when every single penny is being allocated strictly as per the Finance Commission’s rules.
– Targeted the Mann government over the pending honorarium of Sarpanches
Sharma said that the honorarium meant for Sarpanches has been pending for a long time. Now, instead of taking responsibility, the state government has transferred this burden onto the Panchayats’ accounts. Many Panchayats neither have land nor any source of independent income — how will they pay honorariums to Sarpanches? This entire arrangement imposes financial pressure on Panchayats, which may lead to increased corruption.
Sharma added that the tranches of the Finance Commission — after the 15th, the 16th and 17th — will also continue to come routinely, but the Mann government is engaging in false publicity-based politics by putting its name on these funds.
He said that misleading the people of Punjab, claiming the Centre’s help as its own, and depriving Panchayats of their rights — this is the new face of the Aam Aadmi Party. The BJP will continue to bring this truth before the public.