24112025-CT-01.qxd 24-11-2025 00:12 Page 1 c m y b Chandigarh tribune BALTANA RLY UNDERBRIDGE STEP CLOSER TO REALITY 3-DAY PUNJAB ENGG COLLEGE YOUTH FEST CONCLUDES MANISH MALHOTRA STEPS INTO FILMMAKING The UT Administrator accords his approval to deposit 50% UT’s share amounting to ~6.40 crore. P3 The final day of PECFEST 2025 witnesses celebration of cultural and creative energy. P3 Celebrated designer awaits the release of his maiden production, Gustaakh Ishq: Kucch Pehle Jaisa.P4 » » AIR QUALITY INDEX CHANDIGARH 157 PANCHKULA 219 401-500 301-400 201-300 101-200 51-100 0-50 SEVERE VERY POOR POOR MODERATE SATISFACTORY GOOD WHAT’S ON CHANDIGARH Wool and Silk Fab: An exhibition of handwoven silk, cotton, sarees and suits from all over India; Lajpat Rai Bhawan, Sector 15; from November 23 to December 3 (11am to 8 pm) APNI MANDI Chandigarh: Sectors 43 & 45 Mohali: Sectors 70, 78 & Phase 5 Panchkula: MDC, Sector 5 Please send information about events in tricity at: whatson@tribunemail.com INBRIEF MAN HELD FOR THEFT AT SHOP Chandigarh: Durgesh, alias Siyaram, a resident of Burail, has been arrested for stealing Rs 3,28,500 from SCO 171 in Sector 38-C during the Friday night. A case has been registered under Sections 305(B) and 331(4) of the BNS at Sector 39 on a complaint filed by shop owner Jagdip Chawla. The police are investigating whether others were involved in the theft. TNS ONE ARRESTED FOR STEALING ~60K Chandigarh: The police have arrested Avdesh of Faida village in connection with a theft from a parked car in Sector 34 on Saturday. The complainant, Saha Alam of Burail, reported that Rs 60,000 cash, an Aadhaar card and an ATM card were stolen from his car by smashing the rear window. TNS POWER SHUTDOWN CHANDIGARH 10 am to 2 pm: Parts of Sectors 19-C&D, Sadar Bazar, 20-D, 27C&D, 32, 39-C&D, 52, boys’ hostel of GMCH-32 MAINLY CLEAR SKY MAX 25°C | MIN 9°C YESTERDAY MAX 25. 9°C | MIN 7.9°C SUNSET MONDAY 5.23 PM SUNRISE TUESDAY 6.56 AM » MONDAY | 24 NOVEMBER 2025 | CHANDIGARH FORECAST /THETRIBUNECHD FACEBOOK/CHANDIGARHTRIBUNE Why Chandigarh matters: City at heart of federal flashpoint after back-to-back Centre pullbacks Nitin Jain Tribune News Service Chandigarh, November 23 Barely weeks after a political storm forced the Centre to withdraw its contentious Panjab University (PU) restructuring plan, Chandigarh has once again become the epicentre of a fierce federal confrontation — this time over the now-deferred proposal to place the Union Territory under Article 240 through the shelved 131st Constitution Amendment Bill. Although the Union Home Ministry has since clarified that no decision has been taken and no Bill will come in the Winter Session, the panic, outrage and competing claims triggered in the region underline a deeper truth: Chandigarh is not just territory — it is political history, constitutional identity, emotional inheritance and a source of unresolved federal anxieties. The Tribune spoke to a cross-section of political leaders and prominent citizens to understand why Chandigarh matters — to residents, to Punjab, to parties, and to India’s federal fabric. Former BJP Chandigarh president Sanjay Tandon, favouring the current status of Chandigarh, said the loudest voices in the controversy were not the ones who live in the city. “Chandigarh belongs to the people of Chandigarh. Without residents’ opinions, others should not turn it into a tug of war. Our city is our right before anyone else. No neighbourhood politics should dictate the will of city people,” he said. City AAP chief Vijaypal Singh warned that centralising Chandigarh’s administration would “destroy its identity and AFTER PU OVERHAUL AND ARTICLE 240 MOVE TRIGGER UNPRECEDENTED POLITICAL BACKLASH, LEADERS ACROSS SPECTRUM SPEAK TO THE TRIBUNE ON WHY CHANDIGARH IS MORE THAN A TERRITORY, IT'S IDENTITY, RIGHTS, GOVERNANCE & EMOTION WHAT PEOPLE THINK ■ Both moves seen as attempts to reshape Chandigarh’s governance without consultation. ■ Punjab views the developments as dilution of its historic and emotional claim. ■ Chandigarh residents fear loss of control, transparency and local accountability. ■ Two back-to-back retreats indicate political cost of unilateral decisions in a highly sensitive region. << Capital Complex in Chandigarh. TRIBUNE PHOTO: RAVI KUMAR HOW TWO MOVES TRIGGERED POLITICAL STORM ACROSS PUNJAB OCTOBER 30-NOVEMBER 7 Panjab University Overhaul Sparks Outrage ■ The Tribune breaks the story on October 30 about historic restructuring of PU. ■ Massive cross-party backlash erupts in Punjab. ■ Centre issues four notifications in seven days to withdraw, dilute or reverse the move. hollow out democracy.” He said the city’s governance had always benefited from officers on deputation from Punjab and Haryana who understood local realities. “If officers with no connection to Punjab, Haryana or Chandigarh make decisions from Delhi, the relationship between administration and citizens will collapse. Chandigarh is not just land — it is an emotion.” Congress Chandigarh chief HS Lucky said the escalating Centre-Punjab tensions only highlight the need for the long-neglected UT Adminis- ■ PU issue formally shelved within a week. NOVEMBER 22 Chandigarh Restructuring Move Surfaces ■ Parliament’s Winter Session bulletin shows proposal to bring Chandigarh under Article 240. ■ Political tempers explode in Punjab and Chandigarh within hours. trator’s Advisory Council to meet immediately. “Thousands of residents suffer because civic and policy decisions remain stuck. Chandigarh needs a fixed five-year mayoral tenure, resolution of land pooling, freehold conversion for industries, housing board regularisation and colony ownership rights. The debate on UT status must happen transparently — not through sudden moves that unsettle the city.” The Shiromani Akali Dal’s Chandigarh unit termed the Article 240 proposal an Birthday party turns violent at Sec 56, youth stabbed to death Tribune News Service Chandigarh, November 23 A 24-year-old man was stabbed to death during a late-night scuffle that broke out at a birthday celebration in Sector 56 last night. The victim, who has been identified as Vishal, a resident of the same sector, was rushed to the Government Multi-Speciality Hospital, Sector 16. Doctors declared him dead on arrival. According to the police, the incident occurred around 1.30 am when an argument broke out between Vishal and Shubham. Both were in an ine- briated state. The disagreement reportedly began outside the house of Gurmeet Kumar, whose son was hosting a birthday party. Family members intervened in an attempt to calm both youths, but the quarrel intensified. Shubham left the area. He, however, returned moments later armed with a knife and attacked Vishal, inflicting several blows to his abdomen and torso. He allegedly fled immediately after the assault. Neighbours and family members took the injured to hospital in a private vehicle, but doctors declared him dead on arrival. Meanwhile, a team from the Sector 39 police station examined the crime scene and called in forensic teams to assist with evidence collection. The cops traced and arrested the suspect hours later. They claimed to have recovered the weapon used in the crime. The police said initial investigations indicated that both youths were under the influence of alcohol and that the altercation stemmed from a trivial issue, with no prior enmity between them. Vishal, who worked with a private company, is survived by wife and child. NOVEMBER 23, 2025 Centre Steps Back ■ MHA issues late-night clarification: ■ No final decision taken. ■ No plan to bring Bill in Winter Session. ■ No change to Chandigarh’s governance or ties with Punjab/Haryana. “assault on Punjab’s rights”, insisting that since Chandigarh was built on Punjab’s land, any attempt to restructure its administrative model was “unacceptable”. The SAD warned of democratic protests if any dilution of Punjab’s stake is attempted. Prominent citizen and UT Advisory Council member Ajay Jagga offered a contrarian view, saying that a dedicated Lieutenant Governor was a “welcome change” and administratively overdue. “Chandigarh needs a full-time head. With disturbed-area laws long Haryana CM Nayab Singh Saini travels by a Haryana Roadways bus from Dera Bassi to Ambala on Sunday. Zirakpur, November 23 Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini today sprang a surprise by boarding a roadways bus from Dera Bassi to Ambala and interacting with passengers and the crew. Sources said the Chief Minister was on his way to Delhi when he stopped at Dera Bassi to meet local leader Gurdarshan Singh Saini. After a brief halt, the CM resumed his journey. However, instead of taking his official sedan, he walked to the nearby bus stand and boarded a Haryana Roadways bus. As soon as the Chief Minister boarded the bus, passengers, bus driver and conductor were surprised to see him. He interacted with the passengers and took feedback on the functioning of his government and administrative officials. The passengers said the Chief Minister made it a point to take a bus ticket from the conductor for his journey. While interacting with the passengers, Saini said it was important to take c m y b Nitin Jain Tribune News Service Chandigarh, November 23 Former Union Minister and ex-Chandigarh MP Pawan Kumar Bansal has sounded one of the sharpest warnings yet on the now-withdrawn proposal to bring Chandigarh under Article 240, calling it a move with “far graver implications than merely appointing a Lieutenant Governor.” Speaking to The Tribune, the veteran Congress leader and legal luminary said the change would have fundamentally altered Chandigarh’s constitutional architecture. Bansal explained that the Centre already enjoys full authority under Article 239 to administer any Union Territory through an Administrator of its choosing — even a Governor of a neighbouring state acting independently of that state’s Council of Ministers. “Therefore, projecting this as only a change in designation or as an LG appointment is misleading,” he said. The real danger, Bansal stressed, lies in the immense power the Union Government would acquire if Chandigarh was placed under Article 240. “Any Act of Parliament or law applicable to Chandigarh could be repealed or amended simply through a regulation, bypassing Parliament altogether,” he said. Currently, only Parliament can legislate for Chandigarh. Ex-Chd MP Pawan Kumar Bansal Such a shift, he warned, would allow the Centre to rewrite or dilute all key laws governing the city — including the Capital of Punjab (Development and Regulation) Act, 1952, the Punjab Municipal Corporation Act, and the Haryana Housing Board Act, 1971 — through executive notifications that carry the force of parliamentary law. “In effect, Chandigarh could be governed by an executive fiat originating at the level of a Section Officer and ending with a Joint Secretary in the Home Ministry,” Bansal said, adding that Parliament would be “completely excluded” from legislating for the UT. As an illustration, he said long-pending objections to amendments in the Estate Rules through executive order could become meaningless overnight. Continued on page 2 Man assaulted in Manimajra Tribune News Service Chandigarh, November 23 The police have booked a resident of Manimajra for assaulting a youth near his residence in the same area. The police registered an FIR at the Manimajra station under Section 118(1) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) after Shivam of Qila area was stabbed near his residence on Saturday. The assailant, Himanshu, a resident of Mori Gate area, allegedly attacked the victim following a dispute, causing stab injuries. He was admitted to the Civil Hospital. The police are taking the statements of witnesses. The accused is absconding. Dera Bassi to Ambala: CM Saini takes roadways bus Tribune News Service repealed and the Adviser already upgraded to Chief Secretary rank, a standalone LG aligns the UT with other centrally administered territories.” Union Minister Ravneet Singh Bittu, the lone Punjabi face in the Union Council of Ministers, stepped in on Sunday to calm tempers, calling the uproar “fear-mongering” and asserting that “nothing — absolutely nothing — is happening that affects Punjab’s rights over Chandigarh”. Backed by an MHA statement ruling out any Bill in the Winter Continued on page 2 Article 240 move more dangerous than LG appointment: Bansal feedback on the working of the government. The CM also sat in a front seat and interacted with the bus driver and conductor for a while. Dera Bassi BJP leader Gurdarshan Singh Saini, whom the Chief Minister met in Dera Bassi said, “The Chief Minister makes a point to interact with public often.” Upon reaching Ambala, the Chief Minister alighted from the bus and resumed his journey in the official car, in the protection of his cavalcade. ADMISSIONS OPEN EMPOWERED LEARNING Cultivating Future-Ready Leaders We recognize and nurture each child's unique strengths across academics, sports, arts, leadership and emerging technologies. Our curriculum integrates STREAM (Science, Technology, Robotics, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics) through handson, transformative learning experiences. We cultivate problem-solvers who think computationally, lead ethically and innovate boldly in an ever-evolving world. Our entrepreneurship programs teach Affiliated to CBSE small WONDERS SCHOOL Play Group (2 + yrs), Nursery (3 + yrs), LKG (4 + yrs) Phase 7, Mohali. T: 0172 2274827/834, 5090834 99883 35104 www.smallwondersschool.com official@smallwondersschool.com SMART WONDERS SCHOOL UKG to Class X ( UKG : 5 + yrs ) Sector 71, Mohali. T: 0172 2270063-65, 99148 15444 www.smartwonderschool.com official@smartwonderschool.com Age as on April 1st, 2026 students to identify opportunities, take calculated risks and turn ideas into reality. Children admitted to small WONDERS do not have to seek fresh admission for UKG at SMART WONDERS. Scan QR Code