New Delhi: The Punjab government has officially dissolved the Department of Administrative Reforms, previously assigned to Minister Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal, despite it not functioning for the past 20 months. The move, formalized in a gazette notification on Friday, is part of a broader administrative reshuffle, which also saw the transfer of 21 IPS officers.
The decision has drawn criticism from the BJP and Akali Dal, who mocked the AAP government for its confusion over the non-existent department. BJP leaders, including Kanchan Gupta and Amit Malviya, criticized the AAP’s governance, labelling it a “Kejriwal Model.”
Dhaliwal downplayed the controversy, stating that the government is focused on service, not departmental fights. Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann blamed previous administrations for the confusion, emphasizing that governance reforms are now under Minister Aman Arora’s purview.
This restructuring, which also involves potential changes within the legal department, comes ahead of the Punjab Assembly’s session on February 24-25, and follows AAP’s poor performance in the February 5 Delhi Assembly elections. The move has fueled speculation that AAP is shifting its political focus to Punjab.
