Punjab Minister Kuldeep Dhaliwal ran fake department for 20 months, BJP slams

Punjab minister Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal ran a non-existent department for 20 months, The Tribune reported. A gazette notification from the chief secretary confirmed this.

The notification stated, “The department of administrative reforms earlier allotted to Dhaliwal does not exist.” The Punjab government modified the allocation of portfolios, leaving Dhaliwal with only the NRI affairs department.

Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann approved the change, which took effect on February 7, 2025. Dhaliwal initially handled the agriculture and farmers welfare portfolio. A Cabinet reshuffle in May 2023 shifted him to administrative reforms. Another reshuffle in September 2024 did not change his role. The department, however, existed only on paper.

Sources revealed that no staff worked for the department, and it held no meetings. Dhaliwal reportedly sought clarification since his department lacked a secretary.

Meanwhile, Dhaliwal has been in the news for handling US deportees arriving in Amritsar as the minister of NRI affairs.

BJP leader Amit Malviya criticized the Punjab government’s oversight. He posted on X, “It took 20 months to realize this department never existed. Arvind Kejriwal must be removed from public life.”

BJP spokesperson Pradeep Bhandari called the situation a mockery of governance. “AAP has turned Punjab into a joke! A minister ran a non-existent department for 20 months, and the CM never noticed!”

Shiromani Akali Dal leader Harsimrat Kaur Badal also slammed AAP. “This is governance AAP-style. Ministers don’t even know their own portfolios because the real decisions come from Delhi.”

Congress has announced protests against the government’s handling of the issue.