04112025-CT-01.qxd 11/4/2025 1:04 AM Page 1 c m y b Chandigarh tribune PICK UP GARBAGE FROM UPPER FLOORS, MC TELLS COLLECTORS MOHALI MC MEET ON WASTE DISPOSAL INCONCLUSIVE Civic body relying on 50-acre GMADA land to be used as a garbage dumping ground. P2 PARTLY CLOUDY MAX 30°C | MIN 16°C YESTERDAY MAX 30.5°C | MIN 15.4°C ‘HAMARI CHHORI CHHORE SE KAM HAI KYA!’ UT civic body’s House approves new memorandum listing guidelines for door-to-door collection. P2 FORECAST This iconic line has taken over social media as India’s women’s cricket team won the ICC World Cup. P4 » » SUNSET TUESDAY 5.33 PM SUNRISE WEDNESDAY 6:39 AM » TUESDAY | 4 NOVEMBER 2025 | CHANDIGARH /THETRIBUNECHD FACEBOOK/CHANDIGARHTRIBUNE MP Tewari terms Centre’s move ‘unconstitutional’ To raise issue in Parl; ex-Senators mull legal challenge Nitin Jain WHAT’S ON Tribune News Service CHANDIGARH National Wool & Silk Expo: Himachal Bhawan, Sector 28, from November 1 to 6,open daily from 11 am to 8 pm.The exhibition-cumsale features silk and wool products from across India. APNI MANDI Chandigarh: Sectors 29 and 56, and Dhanas Panchkula: Sector 15 Mohali: Sectors 68 and 71 Please send information about events in tricity at: whatson@tribunemail.com POWER SHUTDOWN CHANDIGARH 10 am to 12 noon: Parts of Motor Market, main bazaar, Janta Rehri Market, Nagla Mohalla, Pocket No. 1 in Manimajra 10 am to 1 pm: Parts of Sectors 42, 43, 32-A,C and D 10 am to 2 pm: Home Science College, Sector10, Leisure Valley, parts of Sector 10, 1, 2, 3, 10, 11, 18B &C,19-A & C, 34 A & B, 35-B, grain market, waterworks colony and Sec 7 residential/commercial area, Sector 7-C, Sector 8, Madhya Marg showrooms, Moloya Colony, Mauli Complex, Charan Singh Colony, Pocket No. 6, Sarangpur, Dhanas, Mauli, Vikasnagar and Raipur Kalan, Central Club, Sector 9 and 9-B 2 pm to 4 pm: Parts of Shubhash Nagar, MHC, duplex houses 2 pm to 5 pm: Parts of Young Dwellers, Advovate Society, Vigyan Vihar, IAS/IPS Society, Punjab and Sindh Bank Society, RCS Society, Shivalik, Ashirwad and Sawti 3 pm to 5 pm: Parts of Sector 35-C Students try to block gate number 2 of the Panjab University campus in protest against the decision to dissolve the Senate. PU overhaul sparks student agitation, political storm Protesters lock gate |Professors laud reform |Parties stage protest Nitin Jain VACUUM FILLED Tribune News Service Chandigarh, November 3 The Centre’s sweeping decision to dissolve and reconstitute the 59-year-old Senate and Syndicate of Panjab University (PU) today triggered dramatic scenes on multiple fronts — from student protests on the campus to political outrage spilling into the Chandigarh Municipal Corporation and streets. The protesting students tried to gherao university officials by blocking campus gates, even as the Opposition and the Aam Aadmi Party’s city unit launched demonstrations against the BJP-led Centre’s move. Earlier in the day, the MC general house meeting witnessed uproar when AAP councillor Jasbir Singh Ladi raised the issue of the restructuring of PU’s Senate and ❝ The outgoing Senate failed to act on governance reforms even though the authorised committee’s report lay pending since 2018. The Centre has now filled that vacuum, providing relief to the ViceChancellor who must lead PU as a corporate body. —Prof Arun Grover, FORMER VICE-CHANCELLOR ❞ WAS LONG OVERDUE this step. It is a very good ❝I welcome for PU. It was long overdue, as it development has been debated for the last 30 years, if not more. All its advantages will be known in due course of time. — Prof KN Pathak, EX-VICE-CHANCELLOR ❞ Syndicate. He was joined by councillors Damanpreet Singh and others who demanded a discussion on the matter first reported by The Tribune. However, Mayor Harpreet Kaur Babla of the BJP disallowed the debate, stating that the matter “did not fall under the Corporation’s purview.” Later in the evening, AAP’s Chandigarh unit held a candle march at Sector 17 Plaza to protest what it called “the Centre’s autocratic attempt to usurp Punjab’s educational institutions.” On the campus, tensions escalated as PU students intensified their protest by shutting down Gate No. 2 and trying to gherao university officials. They launched an indefinite sit-in around 2 pm, which was still continuing late into the night, preventing anyone from entering or exiting the premises. The agitation gained momentum after Haryana Congress MP Deepender Singh Hooda arrived on the campus to express solidarity with the protesting students. SAD’s former MP Prem Singh Chandumajra and BSP Punjab president Avtar Singh Karimpuri also joined the students’ protest. However, many leading voices continued on page 2 Chandigarh, November 3 Terming the Centre’s decision to overhaul the governance of Panjab University as “constitutionally untenable and historically flawed,” Chandigarh Congress MP and former Union Minister Manish Tewari has warned that the move “will not stand judicial scrutiny” and “amounts to trampling the federal scheme of the Constitution.” Speaking exclusively to The Tribune, which first broke the story of the dramatic restructuring, Tewari on Monday declared that the Centre cannot invoke incidental powers under the Punjab Reorganisation Act, 1966 to amend a state law enacted in 1947. Meanwhile, it is learnt that some former Senators are already preparing to approach court against the decision, while MP himself will raise the issue prominently in Parliament. Tewari revealed that he had met then Vice-President and Panjab University Chancellor Jagdeep Dhankhar last October and advised him against any such proposal. “I had cautioned that this step would be unconstitutional and must not be pursued,” he said. The Centre late last week notified sweeping changes — abolishing elections for the Syndicate by converting it into a fully nominated body and reducing Senate strength from roughly 90 to 31 — marking the first such restructuring since November 1, 1966. Tewari, citing historical and constitutional foundations, Banquet hall owners booked ZIRAKPUR FIRE Zirakpur, November 3 The police have booked the owners and management of “Aura Garden” and “Sekhon Palace” for endangering the lives of hundreds of visitors. A fire broke out at one of the banquet halls and soon engulfed the other in Zirakpur during a wedding party around 10:30 pm on last night. The police said the fire could have been triggered by a stray firecracker. They have not ruled out a cylinder blast or fire in the kitchen area of the banquet halls t. No fire safety arrangements mandatory for such big public functions were found at the spot. Various other irregularities were also found there. Senior administration officials and departments concerned are probing the incident. Necessary permissions and fire NOCs have been sought from the banquet hall owners, they said. No loss of life was reported as people were evacuated in time. — TNS LEGAL TANGLE:SEC 72 VS PANJAB UNIVERSITY ACT, 1947 Punjab Reorganisation Act, 1966 (Central Law) ■ Created Punjab and Haryana; transferred regions to Himachal. ■ Section 72 allows temporary, incidental orders to remove difficulties during transition ■ Intended for short-term administrative adjustments in 1966-67 Panjab University Act, 1947 (State Law) ■ Enacted by Punjab Legislative Assembly ■ Created Panjab University after Partition as successor to the Lahore university ■ Establishes governance bodies: Senate, Syndicate, Registrar, VC etc ■ Gives the university a distinct statelinked autonomous character THE CORE DISPUTE ■ Can a temporary transitional power under a Central law be used in 2025 to amend a state statute from 1947? ■ Tewari says: No — it violates federalism and legislative competence ■ Centre says: Yes — Panjab University in Chandigarh is a reorganisation-affected institution stressed that PU was the legal successor of the institution originally established in Lahore in 1882. After Partition, he said, the Punjab Assembly passed the Panjab University Act, 1947 — “a state enactment, not a Central law” — to establish the university in East Punjab following the loss of Lahore to Pakistan. “The University’s character and governance flow from a state statute,” he emphasised. He outlined how the Punjab Reorganisation Act, 1966, led to the trifurcation of the state and administrative redistribution, but asserted that Section 72 — a transitional provision — was meant only for temporary, incidental arrangements, not radical structural alterations decades later. “To use it 59 years later to rewrite the Senate and Syndicate is legally impermissible. It is a clear violation of federalism,” he said, calling it “a legal travesty, an overreach and an affront to the constitutional balance.” The decision has sparked sharp criticism from alumni, professors, former Senators and political leaders across Punjab, Haryana and Chandigarh, who accuse the Centre of centralisation and undermining the university’s heritage of elected representation. Student organisations have also opposed the move. The Centre has defended the overhaul, arguing that it will curb politics on campus, end factional elections, and ensure professional academic governance in a premier national institution. But Tewari countered that procedural legitimacy cannot be sacrificed for administrative convenience. “Reforms are a secondary debate. The primary issue is constitutional propriety,” he said. “India is not a unitary command — it is a Union of States. Federalism cannot be rewritten by executive fiat.” Missing youth found murdered Mohali, November 3 A 22-year-old youth, Anil Chauhan, who had been missing since October 15, was found dead in the forest area at Kajheri today. Five youths of the locality were questioned by the police, after which the body was found. The police suspect it to be a case of murder over old enmity. On a statement of the vic- tim's brother, Udhesh Chauhan, a murder case has been registered. Chauhan said his brother left home on October15 but did not return. The victim was a resident of Kumbhra and employed with a private firm. His family had filed a missing person report in Mansa. The police said they would book the suspects shortly and arrest them. — TNS A house for Mr Kejriwal in Sec 2 has a hoary past Ruchika M Khanna Amanjot Kaur (left) celebrates the wicket of South Africa’s Tazmin Brits during the ICC Women's ODI World Cup final at DY Patil Stadium, Navi Mumbai. PTI Missed calls and a miracle catch Amanjot looks back at night of World Cup triumph Deepankar Sharda Tribune News Service Navi Mumbai, November 3 Admired by fans for her jovial personality and witty one-liners, India all-rounder Amanjot Kaur was juggling between searching for mobile network and clicking pictures with her teammates last evening. She wished to talk to her father, Bhupinder Singh, who was distributing sweets to celebrate India’s ICC Women’s ODI World Cup triumph, but could not connect to him over the phone. She tried thrice, before leaving it for later and joining her teammates for a quick dance to the tunes of Punjabi numbers. On being asked if she had a word with her father or coach Nagesh Gupta, Amanjot turned her phone and said, “I am not getting network, but will talk to them later. Now, it is time to enjoy the win.” Always sporting a smile, Amanjot faced her fear in the crucial World Cup final against South Africa. She fumbled twice before finally taking Laura Wolvaardt’s catch at deep mid-wicket. “I was nervous to the core. It was the toughest catch of my life as the ball slipped out of my right hand. I managed to keep my eyes on it and get my hand under it for the second time, but it slipped again. Somehow, I managed to get hold of it while diving to the ground,” said Amanjot, who became a key member of India’s title-winning team. While she is the first in her family to play cricket, Amanjot gets plenty of support and advice from home. “In the morning, I got advice from my aunt. She does not know anything about cricket, but suggested that I should swing even without seeing the ball. My family members do not understand cricket that well. For them, if the ball hits the bat, it’s a four. If not, you lose your wicket...I have slowly gotten used to such banter,” laughed Amanjot. While his daughter is busy making the country proud, Bhupinder, a carpenter by profession, has his own routine that keeps him occupied. He still loves to open his shop himself every morning to carry out continued on page 2 Tribune News Service Chandigarh, November 3 The house at the heart of the recent face-off between the BJP and the ruling AAP government in Punjab, pejoratively called “Sheesh Mahal” by the BJP is a sprawling bunga, low in Sector 2, that over the decades has been inhabited by powerful people both from Punjab and Haryana. It is a 16-kanal plot, about two acres – the kanal being a unit of land measurement introduced by the British Raj for land revenue purposes, and still widely used across North India. It certainly has a hoary past. Number 50 is close to Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann’s residence, a mere stone’s throw away, close enough to the Sukhna Lake to take your morning walk. This is the house, which has been freshly painted for AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal, to stay during his visit(s) to Chandigarh. But in otherwise sleepy Chandigarh, whose politically c m y b Government House No. 50 in Sector 2, Chandigarh. TRIBUNE PHOTO: RAVI KUMAR sharp and equally socially conscious citizenry grade your place in the world according to your address, the house that you live in is a powerful signifier of influence. CM Mann has stated that this house is actually a “camp office-cum-guest house” in the Chief Minister’s ministerial pool, meaning, the CM is entitled to accommodate who the CM wants. Kejriwal, the CM has said, is his guest. Clearly, there is something special about House No. 50. A string of influential people have been its residents over the past three decades. After Parkash Singh Badal lost the election in 2002 to Capt Amarinder Singh-led Con- gress, he refused to vacate this house. But Badal never lived here, his staff did. But then Badal’s good friend, Om Prakash Chautala lost the Haryana elections in 2005 and needed a house to live in Chandigarh, so Badal offered him his allotted house. What happened next is a classic tale of entitlement mixed up with both friendship and privilege – and no questions asked. Apparently, the then Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Hooda of the Congress, denied Chautala a piece of real estate this size because Chautala did not have the required number of MLAs to be designated the Leader of the Opposition (LoP) in the Haryana Assembly – the LoP is entitled to a designated, sprawling bungalow. Chautala had 9 MLAs and to become LoP you need 10. He was one MLA short. Anyway, Badal came to Chautala’s rescue and for the next five years, he lived in Sector 2. Come 2009, his party performed better, so Chautala shifted to a house allotted to him in Sector 19. But House No. 50’s reputation did not begin with Chautala borrowing it in 2005. Prior to this, it was the residence of Punjab Police’s top cop KPS Gill, to whom the badge of eliminating the worst terrorists in Punjab is often given. In fact, Gill’s predecessor, continued on page 2