The Centre clarified the next day that it does not plan to present the proposed Bill on Chandigarh in the forthcoming Winter session of Parliament.
The Punjab Assembly on Monday reached a unanimous decision granting ‘holy city’ status to Anandpur Sahib in Rupnagar district, Talwandi Sabo in Bathinda, and the Galiara area in Amritsar near the Golden Temple.
The resolution asks for a complete ban on the sale and consumption of liquor, meat, and tobacco products in these locations.
The resolution was introduced by Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on the occasion of a special session of the Punjab Assembly called specifically for the purpose of celebrating the 350th martyrdom anniversary of Guru Tegh Bahadur, here.
This was an unprecedented event in the history of the Punjab Vidhan Sabha as it was the first session of the Assembly to be held outside of the state capital, Chandigarh.
In fact, the special session was held at Bhai Jaita Ji Memorial Park which had been determined for that reason as the site for the Assembly session, and was called only for the purpose of jointly paying tributes to Guru Tegh Bahadur.
The Punjab government is intending to hold numerous events tied to the 350th martyrdom anniversary of the 9th Sikh Guru between November 23-25.
The House also passed another resolution to act on the teachings and life of Guru Tegh Bahadur, in a move designed to channel or inspire actions to bring improvement to the welfare and prosperity of the people in Punjab, which would promote peace, tolerance and harmony in society.
The House, as per a resolution introduced by Education Minister and local MLA Harjot Singh Bains, expressed its utmost respect and reverence and bows with respect, devotion and faith to the Sikh Guru.
As part of the resolution, the House expressed its humble tributes to Guru Tegh Bahadur and honour his memory by observing his 350st martyrdom anniversary in a respectful way.
The resolution also commended the Punjab government for its various events and programmes to honour the occasion of the 350th year of martyrdom of Guru Tegh Bahadur, such as the special Assembly session on the character of Gur Tegh Bahadur, ‘Nagar Kirtans’, ‘Kirtan Darbars’, light and sound shows, drone shows, and an ‘Sarv Dharam Sammelan’ (Interfaith conference).
According to the resolution, the house also resolved to continue promoting the values of secularism, universal brotherhood and human rights as had been indicated by Guru Tegh Bahadur, on behalf of the house.
Taking part in the debate on the resolution, Bains state that school students in Punjab are taught about the Guru’s history in the morning assemblies. Seminars in honour of Guru Tegh Bahadur were also conducted in all of its colleges and universities, he added.
BSP MLA Nachhatar Pal called for Rupnagar district to be named after Guru Tegh Bahadur, in honor of the ninth Sikh Guru’s supreme sacrifice.
Leader of the Opposition, Partap Singh Bajwa, also paid tribute to the supreme sacrifice of Guru Tegh Bahadur, referring to it as a moving tribute to his commitment to freedom of religion and human dignity.
While mentioning Chandigarh, Panjab University, pending rural development fund, and water sharing, Bajwa stated that all Punjabis should unite together in support of Punjab’s rights.
In a concealed critique of the BJP-led government, Bajwa remarked that efforts were underway to “alter history.”
He claimed that the “present leader of the nation” has a mindset akin to that of the Mughals and the British.
“Efforts are underway to alter our history.” We must stay vigilant. “Daily, Punjab’s tolerance is being challenged,” he stated.
“Punjabis need to come together.” “Although we have political disagreements, we must unite for our rights in Punjab and for Punjabiyat,” Bajwa stated.
A bulletin from Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha included the Constitution (131st Amendment) Bill 2025 in the provisional list of 10 Bills for the next session starting December 1.
The proposal to place Chandigarh under Article 240 of the Constitution, granting the president authority to create regulations for the UT and legislate directly, elicited strong responses from leaders in Punjab.
The Centre clarified the next day that it does not plan to present the proposed Bill on Chandigarh in the forthcoming Winter session of Parliament and emphasized that the proposal does not seek to alter the longstanding arrangements between Chandigarh and Punjab and Haryana.
