CM Bhagwant Mann accuses the Centre of postponing 11 key Punjab issues, including PU restructuring and river water rights, after he protested at the Zonal Council meet.

Punjab chief minister Bhagwant Mann asserted that the Center has chosen to postpone important state-related matters, including as the restructuring of Punjab University and the sharing of river flows and other rights with neighboring states.

Mann made the assertion the day after he brought up Punjab’s issues during the 32nd meeting of the Northern Zonal Council in Faridabad, which was presided over by Union Home Minister Amit Shah.

According to the chief minister, he warned the gathering that the federal government should not disregard the interests of the state and “play with the sentiments” of Punjab.

As the defender of the state’s and its citizens’ rights, Mann reaffirmed the state government’s unwavering will to protect Punjab’s and Punjabis’ interests and declared that he would not permit anyone to take them away.

“After I voiced my worries about Punjab and demanded that the current situation be maintained, the Center postponed all 11 issues pertaining to Punjab. “I won’t let anyone take over Punjab’s rights,” Mann said reporters during a press conference.

KAP Sinha, the chief secretary of Punjab, was among those in attendance.

Mann advised the home minister not to let the neighboring states take away Punjab’s rights, saying he vehemently disagreed with all of their allegations during the meeting.

He declared, “I vehemently opposed all the issues raised by other states because they were intended to snatch Punjab’s rights.”

The bulk of states, including Haryana, Rajasthan, and Himachal Pradesh, he claimed, are “hell bent upon infringing the rights” of the state and are needlessly increasing pressure on it for “snatching our rights.” All member states, he added, presented their opinions.

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According to the CM, these states’ careless leaders have ridiculed the platform by requesting unfairly that they be given a portion of the state’s resources, including river waters.

According to Mann, 11 of the 28 agenda items had to do with the state, and for the first time, because of the state government’s tireless efforts, all of them were postponed.

In essence, the chief minister claimed that these problems were “thorns” planted by his predecessors, the Akalis, BJP, and Congress, before Punjab and its citizens.

He remarked that people who are raising a fuss about river water should realize that a real-time evaluation of the water’s availability is necessary.

“Every other state wants a piece of Punjab’s rights.”

Speaking about the headworks, Punjab University, and river flows, Mann claimed that it is “illegitimate” for every other state to be vying for a portion of Punjab’s rights. He stated unequivocally that the state government has an obligation to protect Punjab’s interests and will do everything in its power to do so.

The chief minister suggested that 24 MAF of water from the Chenab River be diverted to Punjab and then channelized for irrigation purposes in all northern states in order to help address the problem of water scarcity for irrigation in northern India following the revocation of the Indus River Waters Treaty.