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Chandigarh, July 13
Punjab BJP president Kewal Singh Dhillon has accused the Bhagwant Mann-led AAP government of pushing the state into a financial crisis through repeated borrowing, despite its claims of rising revenues. In a statement on Sunday, Dhillon referred to a Punjab Finance Department notification issued on July 10, which announced plans to raise Rs 1,000 crore through the re-issue of 7.55% Punjab 2033 bonds. He said the fresh borrowing raises questions about the state’s financial health, arguing that it does not match the government’s repeated assertions that tax collections, including GST, VAT and excise revenue, have been growing steadily.
Dhillon claimed the state borrowed about Rs 24,000 crore in 2022-23, nearly Rs 28,000 crore in 2023-24 and Rs 34,201 crore in 2024-25. He further alleged that by January in the current 2025-26 financial year, Punjab had already borrowed more than Rs 20,770 crore against a planned borrowing target of Rs 49,900 crore, before taking an additional Rs 1,000 crore loan. According to him, Punjab’s outstanding debt has risen from around Rs 2.82 lakh crore in 2022 to about Rs 4.17 lakh crore and could reach nearly Rs 4.48 lakh crore by 2026-27.
Questioning the government’s fiscal management, Dhillon asked why the state continues to rely on fresh loans if revenue collections have improved over the past four years.
He also accused the government of increasing the debt burden on future generations instead of strengthening Punjab’s economy. Dhillon called on Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann and Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema to present the state’s actual financial position to the public and outline a clear plan to reduce debt rather than depending on repeated market borrowings.
The Punjab government has not responded publicly to Dhillon’s allegations.
The North News
