The Fact News Service
Chandigarh, May 29
Senior Congress leader and former Health Minister of Punjab, Balbir Singh Sidhu, launched a sharp attack on the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government, accusing it of “hollow governance and failed promises in the education sector.”
Sidhu said the much-hyped Sikhya model promoted by the AAP government is far removed from the ground reality. “The AAP government is functioning only through advertisements and posters. The truth is that the education sector in Punjab is stagnating,” he said.
Citing an example from his tenure, Sidhu highlighted that during his government, just one government high school in Launders (Mohali constituency) was transformed with an allocation of ₹35 lakh. “We constructed six new state-of-the-art classrooms and purchased furniture worth ₹1 lakh. Similar upgrades were carried out in multiple schools across the constituency,” he stated.
“Compare that to today, where the AAP government is inaugurating toilet repairs and calling it an education revolution,” he added mockingly.
Sidhu further pointed out that his government had opened six government schools in the constituency and issued official notifications for upgrading them. The schools in Launderon, Mauli Baidwan, and Saneta were notified for upgradation to higher secondary; Nagari to middle school; and Siyao and Ballomajra to matriculation level. “Despite tall claims, the AAP government has failed to operationalize these upgrades. The buildings stand ready, but no classes have been started,” he remarked.
“Teacher shortages and lack of proper infrastructure still persist. Whatever improvements are visible today are the result of the work done by previous governments—not AAP,” Sidhu asserted.
He demanded that Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann and the AAP leadership move beyond “publicity stunts” and “meaningless slogans” and immediately focus on completing long-pending educational projects in the Mohali region.
“The people of Punjab deserve substance over show. The time has come to shift from posters to actual work,” he concluded.
