"Not An Inch Due": Punjab Rejects Harayan's Claim On Assembly Building

Gian Chand Gupta said 53 years have passed since the state was carved out of Punjab, but it is yet to get its due share in the assembly building in Chandigarh, which serves the joint capital of both states.

Chandigarh:

Haryana Speaker Gian Chand Gupta said the state has not been given its full share in the assembly building since its creation over 50 years ago, a charge refuted by his Punjab counterpart Rana KP Singh who claimed that ''not an inch was due''.

Mr Gupta said 53 years have passed since the state was carved out of Punjab, but it is yet to get its due share in the assembly building in Chandigarh, which serves the joint capital of both states.

After Haryana came into existence on November 1, 1966, both states have common buildings for the secretariat, Vidhan Sabha and the Punjab and Haryana High Court.

Raising the demand, Mr Gupta said he has leant from media reports that his Punjab counterpart has maintained that they do not have any space to give to his state.

After the creation of Haryana, Mr Gupta said the neighbouring state was to share 40 per cent space in the building under the Punjab Reorganisation Act.

It has not been implemented as 20 rooms of the state's share are still with Punjab, he claimed.

"Under the Punjab Reorganisation Act, Haryana should have got 40 per cent share in space in the assembly building. But 53 years have passed, so far we have got only 27 per cent space," Mr Gupta told reporters on Tuesday.

Mr Gupta said if given their share, Haryana officials would get enough space to sit, further improving the functioning of the Vidhan Sabha.

"I learnt through the media that the Punjab assembly speaker has said that they do not have any space to give to Haryana. I think this is injustice and violation of agreement," Mr Gupta said.

He said they will take up the issue with Punjab Governor and Chandigarh Administrator VP Singh Badnore and if need rose, they will approach Union Home Minister Amit Shah in this regard.

"We treat Punjab as our elder brother but they should not do injustice with the younger brother," he said.

Reacting to Mr Gupta's statement, Punjab Speaker Rana KP Singh said the issue has already been sorted out.

"I have examined it, I have checked it, if there was even one inch space, we would have definitely given it. But there is nothing that we have to give," he said.

On Haryana Speaker's claim that only 27 per cent space has been given, Mr Singh said, "I cannot comment on that."

When specifically asked if Haryana has got its 40 per cent share, Mr Singh replied, "Yes, there is no doubt at all."

When asked about his Haryana counterpart writing to him earlier about his state's share, Mr Singh said, "He wrote a letter to me, then I got this letter examined from my office threadbare. Ultimately, it was found that nothing is due which we are supposed to give to them."

After the formation of Haryana in 1966, of the total 64,430 sq ft area of the Vidhan Sabha, the state was to get 24,630 sq ft.

The Punjab Vidhan Sabha was allocated 30,890 sq ft while the remaining 10,910 sq ft was kept for the Punjab Vidhan Parishad, which does not exist.