Asserting that his government would take all legislative and judicial remedies to protect the interests of the people, Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh on Thursday ordered the constitution of a committee to evolve a comprehensive strategy in the light of the High Court order relating to the constructions in the Sukhna Lake area.It was not viable to displace the tens of thousands of people living in the constructions around the Sukhna Lake in Chandigarh, said the Chief Minister, while chairing a high-level meeting to discuss the issue.The Chief Minister asked Advocate General Atul Nanda to coordinate with his Haryana counterpart to ensure a formidable defence in response to the order of the High Court of Punjab and Haryana to demolish the constructions in the Sukhna Lake area.Captain Amarinder Singh also directed the Chief Secretary to designate nodal officers from Forests and Local Government Departments to assist the AG Office to prepare the state’s response in the court, said an official spokesperson after the meeting.
The spokesperson said the committee set up by the Chief Minister will be headed by Chief Principal Secretary Suresh Kumar, with PSCM Tejveer Singh besides MP Anandpur Sahib Manish Tewari, MLAs Parminder Singh Pinki, Fatehjung Singh Bajwa, Kanwar Sandhu and Amandeep Singh as members. The committee has been mandated to evolve a consensus strategy in consultation with the AG Office Punjab to decide the future course of action, through the formulation of a multi-pronged strategy involving all stakeholders including the state of Haryana.Earlier, Advocate General Atul Nanda apprised Captain Amarinder Singh of the various options available to the state for countering the High Court opinion in the matter. Taking part in the deliberations, MP Anandpur Sahib Manish Tewari highlighted the law and order aspect of the judgement.The meeting was attended by the Advocate General Atul Nanda, Media Advisor to CM Raveen Thukral, Principal Secretary to CM Tejveer Singh, MP Anandpur Sahib Manish Tewari, MLA Ferozepur Parminder Singh Pinki, MLA Kadian Fatehjung Singh Bajwa, MLA Kharar Kanwar Sandhu, ACS Forests Ravneet Kaur, ACS Local Government Sanjay Kumar, Principal Secretary Housing Sarvjit Singh and Director Town & Planning Kavita Singh. The residents association was represented by Amandeep Singh.