ML Khattar welcomes Bhagwant Mann with tilak, raises Satlej-Yamuna canal issue

Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann was at the Haryana Raj Bhavan to attend the Holi Milan ceremony where both the chief ministers met for the first time since Mann took oath as Punjab’s 17th chief minister.

Punjab’s new chief minister, Bhagwant Mann, was greeted with a tilak at the Haryana Raj Bhavan by Chief Minister ML Khattar ahead of the festival of colours tomorrow. Bhagwant Mann was at the Haryana Raj Bhavan to attend the Holi Milan ceremony where both the chief ministers met for the first time since Mann took oath as Punjab’s 17th chief minister.

ML Khattar also presented a bouquet to his Punjab counterpart.

Bhagwant Mann fought the recently-concluded Punjab Assembly elections as a candidate of the Aam Aadmi Party which swept the state, winning 92 of the 117 seats in the state. He was sworn in at a ceremony held in freedom fighter Bhagat Singh’s ancestral village - Khatkar Kalan.

This is the first time the AAP will form a government in a full state since its inception in 2014. The party broke through the bastions long held by the Shiromani Akali Dal and the Congress to form a government with a sweeping majority.

Also Read: | Punjab will burn if made to share water: CM Amarinder says Sutlej-Yamuna Link emotive issue

Punjab and Haryana, which share the same capital - Chandigarh, have been for long embroiled in a bitter conflict over the Sutlej Yamuna Link (SYL) Canal. The Supreme Court on July 28, 2020, directed the chief ministers of both the states to settle the dispute by way of talks within three weeks. Several rounds of talks have been held since on the issue.

Haryana has been asking for the completion of the SYL canal to get its share of 3.5 million acre feet of the river water. It had also asserted that Punjab should comply with the 2002 and 2004 Supreme Court orders for the completion of SYL canal for its share of the Ravi-Beas water.