Punjab BJP picks holes in Mann-led AAP govt’s borrowings

Chandigarh, July 12 (IANS) State President of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Punjab, Kewal Singh Dhillon, on Sunday said that the Bhagwant Mann-led Aam Aadmi Party government has pushed the state into a deep financial crisis through continuous borrowing, saying the government’s policies have transformed the dream of “prosperous Punjab” into a “kangal (bankrupt) Punjab”.

Dhillon said the state government’s latest Finance Department notification dated July 10 is to raise another Rs 1,000 crore, ‘exposed’ Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema’s repeated claims of strong revenue growth.

The Punjab BJP chief said that Cheema frequently highlights rising Goods and Services Tax (GST), Value-Added Tax (VAT) and excise collections in media briefings and official statements, but the government’s repeated borrowing tells a different story.

Dhillon said the borrowing pattern itself tells the real story. “The AAP government borrowed around Rs 24,000 crore in 2022-23, nearly Rs 28,000 crore in 2023-24, and Rs 34,201 crore in 2024-25. During 2025-26, it had already borrowed over Rs 20,770 crore by January, while planning total borrowings of Rs 49,900 crore for the year. Now, yet another Rs 1,000 crore loan has been added.”

He said Punjab’s outstanding debt has increased from about Rs 2.82 lakh crore in 2022 to around Rs 4.17 lakh crore, with projections indicating it could touch Rs 4.48 lakh crore by 2026-27.

“If Punjab has repeated revenue growth in the past four years, why is the government repeatedly approaching the market for fresh loans?” Dhillon asked, adding that continuous borrowing is burdening future generations instead of strengthening the state’s economy.

He demanded that the Chief Minister and the Finance Minister place the true fiscal position before the people of Punjab and present a credible roadmap for reducing debt rather than relying on repeated borrowings.

–IANS

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