The Punjab Cabinet, convened by Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, passed a resolution on Sunday evening objecting to the central government’s notification that Ashwani Kumar Mishra would become Chief Justice of the Punjab and Haryana High Court. The cabinet said the appointment was made without first seeking the state’s views, thereby bypassing constitutional norms and established procedures.
In separate letters, Mann addressed President Droupadi Murmu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, urging that the oath ceremony scheduled for Monday be postponed until the state’s concerns were addressed. He also requested urgent intervention from the President and Prime Minister to halt the appointment.
Additional Solicitor General Satya Pal Jain criticised the Punjab government’s objection as “unfortunate and totally uncalled for,” noting that the Supreme Court collegium had recommended Mishra’s elevation on August 6. Jain added that all state governments, except Punjab, had sent their views within a week and that no state holds veto power over such appointments.
Hours before the planned oath, the Mann government held an emergency cabinet meeting via video conference. The cabinet decided to put the appointment and oath on hold, citing the need to obtain and consider Punjab’s views. The state also condemned what it described as another instance of central government bypassing constitutional rights.
Mann’s statement highlighted that the central government had withheld Punjab’s Rs 9,000 crore Rural Development Fund and flood relief package, and that the appointment of Mishra without state consent violated the Memorandum of Procedure and constitutional norms. He demanded that the appointment be immediately suspended and that the state’s views be respected in accordance with the prescribed process.
