A public war of words broke out on Friday between Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh and his party colleague and Rajya Sabha MP Partap Singh Bajwa over the appointment of Advocate General (A-G) of Punjab.
Open letter
Capt. Amarinder bluntly told his party colleague that it was “none of his business” to question the appointment of Atul Nanda as Punjab’s A-G after Mr. Bajwa wrote an open letter to the Chief Minister accusing him of nepotism.
“Nepotism is against the interests of the State and the appointment of Shri Atul Nanda as Advocate General, Punjab, is a perfect example of the same, as his appointment had been solely guided by his proximity to you,” Mr. Bajwa, who headed the Congress in Punjab earlier, said in his letter.
Mr. Bajwa posted his ‘open letter’ on his Twitter handle, listing out seven instances in which he alleged the A-G could not protect Punjab’s interest.
“The incompetence of the Advocate General to defend the interests of the State effectively is reflected in the repeated failures faced in the courts in various critical cases,” he said.
Hitting back, the Punjab Chief Minister said of the seven cases cited by Mr. Bajwa, the A-G had handled only one case.
‘Not competent’
“You are neither competent nor equipped to judge Atul Nanda’s competency, and have no business commenting or interfering on matters of which you have absolutely no knowledge,” said the Chief Minister in a statement.
Objecting to the ‘open letter’, Capt. Amarinder termed it a sign of the former Punjab Congress chief’s “desperation to grab political limelight”. “I have full faith in the A-G,” he said.
