Opposition Defeats BJP’s Plan to Amend Women’s Bill & Bring in Delimitation

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) introduced three Bills for passage in the Indian Parliament on 16 Apr. First, Constitution (One Hundred and Thirty-First Amendment) Bill, 2026, said the government will use data from the 2011 Census to delimit constituencies of the Lok Sabha (Lower House of Parliament, LS) and state Legislative Assemblies while reserving one-third seats for women. The Bill had two objectives: to delink 33% women’s quota rollout from the delimitation exercise following the 2026 Census—this provision was part of the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam, 2023 (Women’s Reservation Law, NSVA); and to remove the 50-year freeze on delimitation. Second, Delimitation Bill, 2026 which sought to set up a Delimitation Commission to redraw the LS and state Assembly constituencies based on the 2011 Census figures and increase the LS seats from the current 543 to 850. Third, Union Territories Laws Amendment Bill, 2026, to amend the constitutional framework relating to population, delimitation and reservation in union territories. Since the first Bill was a Constitutional Bill, it needed a two-third majority in the Lower and Upper Houses of Parliament. Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi asked instead of the 2011 census why should not the ongoing census be used? Indian National Congress Member of Parliament (MP) Priyanka Gandhi pointed out that NSVA was already passed in 2023 and BJP can implement it within the current strength of the house instead of adding 307 extra seats which imply that men are preserving their seats. The Tamil Nadu-based Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam’s (DMK) MP Kanimozhi Karunanidhi said tying women reservation to delimitation was a trap and a population based delimitation will be injustice to southern states who had carried out family planning in the past. Aam Aadmi Party’s MP Malvinder Singh Kang opposed the Bill adding that even the current LS structure discriminates against Panjab which has 13 seats. In the final vote, BJP-led NDA was 62 votes short of two-third majority in the LS and the motion was defeated. This is the first time since 2014 that a BJP sponsored Bill has failed in the Parliament. BJP notified the earlier NSVA on the night of 16 Apr but women’s rights groups have asked the government to delink the Act from census and delimitation and propose it again in the next session (earlier coverage).

Strait of Hormuz

Indian Ship Shot at on Hormuz; Panjab Farmers Bear Brunt of War

A convoy of 14 India-bound ships carrying crude oil and gas were stopped by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) on 18 Apr by firing at two of them while they were transiting the Strait of Hormuz, causing 13 of the vessels to return to different locations in the Persian Gulf. Seven of these ships were carrying the Indian flag, four had the Liberia flag, two were of the Marshall Islands, and one of Vietnam. India summoned the Iranian Ambassador in New Delhi for a meeting with the Foreign Secretary on the same day. The Iranian Ambassador assured that India’s concerns would be conveyed to authorities in Tehran. Meanwhile, the US will not extend sanctions waivers allowing countries to purchase Russian and Iranian energy, said US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on 15 Apr. India was a key beneficiary of the sanctions waivers which attracted significant criticism by US politicians. Meanwhile, the situation for small, marginal, and landless farmers in Panjab keeps growing worse. In Patti village, Barnala district, 55-year-old Dalit (marginal caste) farmer Dalbara Singh, along with his three brothers, tills the 20-acres he has taken on lease from a Non-Resident Indian. He points to his tractor and reaper, 'These are guzzlers. If run on full capacity, this drum of diesel will last just two days.' Hence, he borrowed money at an annual interest rate of 18% to make sure his diesel drum remains full. When asked about the high rate of interest, he answered, 'What other option did I have? What if I don’t find diesel a week later? My entire crop will rot.' Similarly, 31-year-old Lakhwinder Singh owns five acres of land in the same village. In 2025 he bought a combine harvester worth USD 13K entirely on loan. It was a great risk for one who earned just USD 1.6K from both harvests in 2025. Apart from that, he owes USD 3.2K to the village cooperative bank. Now, he has sought USD 215 from his commission agent-cum-moneylender to buy diesel. He says, 'The harvesting season lasts just 20 days. I can’t afford to have the machine remain idle for a single day in these three weeks. If I fail to pay the instalment, I’ll end up losing the harvester' (earlier coverage).

Rajinder Singh (left) & Gurmit Singh Photo by Indian Express

'Vaisakhi' Celebrated Worldwide & Sikh Men Shot Dead in Italy

Sikhs in various parts of the world celebrated Khalsa Sajna Diwas (Khalsa Foundation Day) and Vaisakhi, a harvest festival that coincides with the enthronement of Guru Khalsa Panth—the Sikh collective. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney visited Gurdwara Sahib Ottawa on 18 Apr where he joined Sikhs in community service as part of Sikh Heritage Month 2026. He noted that Canada is home to the second-largest Sikh population in the world. In the UK, large crowds filled Trafalgar Square, London with the mayor Sadiq Khan praising the Sikh community's contribution to London. At a reception hosted at 10 Downing Street, UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer marked Vaisakhi with a call for unity and action against anti-Sikh hatred while Sikhs raised the call for UK’s apology on the Jallianwala Bagh massacre in 1919. Starmer said, 'Sikh history is inseparable from Britain’s history.' On 19 Apr, New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon visited the Guru Nanak Sikh Sangat Gurdwara in Otahuhu, Auckland, where he held a special meeting with Giani Kuldip Singh Gargajj, Jathedar (leader) of Sri Akal Takht Sahib (Eternal Throne). In Malaysia, Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi joined the Sikh community for Vaisakhi celebration at Gurdwara Sahib Guru Nanak, Shah Alam. The Embassy of the Islamic Republic of Iran in New Delhi extended its warm congratulations and best wishes to the people of India, especially to their brothers and sisters in the Sikh community. Meanwhile, the pilgrims who had gone to celebrate Vaisakhi in Pakistan have returned. Alongside, on 17 Apr, two Sikhs—Rajinder Singh and Gurmit Singh, both aged 48 years—were shot dead by a gunman in Covo, Bergamo, Italy as they came out of Gurdwara Mata Sahib Kaur Ji. Eyewitnesses said the shooter and accomplices were Indian. The local police are considering the crime an inter-community rivalry though Sikh Federation UK says one of those shot was on Indian National Investigation Agency’s hit list. Earlier, on 9 Feb, Harpal Singh, president of Novellara Gurdwara in Italy was murdered leading to the arrest of two Pakistanis (earlier coverage).

Gurjeet Singh Khalsa Photo by The Tribune

Panjab Governor’s Nod to Anti-Sacrilege Bill

Panjab Governor Gulab Chand Kataria has given his go-ahead to the Jaagat Jot Sri Guru Granth Sahib Satkar (Amendment) Bill (JJGGSS), 2026, paving the way for its enactment into law. The Act proposes a minimum imprisonment of seven years, extendable up to 20 years, along with a fine ranging from USD 2,144–10,720 for desecration of Sikh scriptures. For sacrilege carried out as part of a conspiracy to disturb communal harmony the punishment includes life imprisonment and fines up to USD 26.8K. While passing the JJGGSS Bill, Panjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann sidelined the apex Sikh management body the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) and took the support from Sant Samaj (SS). SS is a collective term for various deras (sects), sampradais (traditional schools of thought), and religious leaders operating within the broader Sikh fold. Many of these groups have remained outside the SGPC’s control. Some of them had enjoyed patronage under British rule and were reluctant to cede authority. Over time, these groups continued to function independently while retaining religious influence. Panjab’s ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) taking SS’ support is a direct affront to SGPC which is considered to be under the control of chief of Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) Sukhbir Singh Badal. The Act serves AAP because the previous SAD and Indian National Congress could not bring such an Act despite passing similar Bills in the state Assembly. An editorial said: the AAP government appears not merely intent on courting a section of the electorate but also on asserting authority over the SGPC which has historically controlled Gurdwara affairs. SAD (Delhi) leader Paramjit Singh Sarna has criticized the Act alleging that it is a 'political instrument' designed to weaken the authority of the SGPC. SGPC member Kiranjot Kaur said that neither the government nor the law has any authority to interpret the Sikh religious doctrine. She also said SGPC should have opposed the Act because it will serve the purpose of separating the Sikhs from the Guru Granth Sahib (Sikh scripture and charter). Parallelly, a 43-year-old farmer Gurjeet Singh Khalsa who completed 555 days atop a telephone tower in Samana, Patiala district demanding the implementation of the anti-sacrilege law will now end his protest (earlier coverage).

Meenu Batra Photo by India Today

Panjabi Court Interpreter Arrested by ICE; Canada Deportation Risk

Advocates in Texas, US are demanding the release of 53-year-old Meenu Batra who was detained by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents while she was traveling to Wisconsin in March. Batra is the only licensed Panjabi, Hindi, and Urdu interpreter in Texas and has lived in the US for over 35 years. Her language skills are requested nationwide, where she’s contracted to help people making their way through the immigration court system. She immigrated to the US in 1991 after her parents were killed in the 1984 Sikh genocide. Batra has spoken out against the inhumane conditions of her detention at the El Valle ICE jail in Raymondville, Texas where she was kept without food and water for over 24 hours. Meanwhile in Canada, nearly 9K Panjabi international students and asylum claimants have received notices following the enactment of the new immigration law called Strengthening Canada’s Immigration System and Borders Act or Bill C-12, putting them at risk of deportation. The Bill has tightened asylum rules, applying to those who entered Canada after 24 Jun 2020. Additionally, data reveals that the share of Indian students moving to Canada is seeing a significant drop. In September 2025, the incoming international student population was just 8.1%, which is a sharp drop from 51.6% in 2023. Furthermore, while Panjab has reported a few hundred drug overdose deaths in the last decade, Canada has recorded as many as 18K such deaths in the same period, signaling a larger crisis in the country. British Columbia declared a public health emergency on 14 Apr 2016 after 474 illicit drug deaths in 2015. In contrast, Panjab reported 78 drug-related deaths in 2021, 144 in 2022, and 89 in 2023. Concurrently, in California, US the immigrant community is being terrorized by gangs based in India. Over 250K Sikhs live in California, the largest population in the US. The community complains of death threats, extortion and intimidation by gangsters over phone calls. Apparently, a gang member calls a person and demands money. If they refuse, a criminal network threatens or carries out attacks against their families, relatives, or businesses—whether in the US or India (earlier coverage).

Ashok Kumar Mittal

ED Raids AAP Ministers; Chadha Gets Z-plus Security

After Aam Aadmi Party Member of Rajya Sabha (Upper House of Parliament, RS) Ashok Kumar Mittal took over as party's Deputy Leader in RS from Raghav Chadha, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) raided his properties on 15 Apr. Along with his brothers Ramesh and Naresh, Mittal is owner of the Lovely Group. The Group owns Lovely Sweets, Lovely Professional University, and automotive dealerships in Jalandhar. The ED action is related to investigation into alleged violations of the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA). On 17 Apr, ED searched the house and other properties of AAP leader and Panjab Cabinet minister Sanjeev Arora in Ludhiana for 'illegal change of land use and other irregularities'. This is ED’s second raid on Arora’s properties by his company M/S Hampton Sky Realty Limited that has business interests in real estate, commercial and industrial housing, retail, hospitality, clothing, and medical projects. The previous raid was conducted on 7 Oct 2024 on the same pretext. Arora was nominated to the RS from Panjab in 2022, but resigned from the Upper House in 2025 to contest the by-poll from the upscale Ludhiana West constituency following the death of AAP Member of Legislative Assembly Gurpreet Gogi. Arora won and was eventually appointed to the state Cabinet and given the portfolios of industry and commerce, local bodies, and power. A real estate baron, Arora is the richest politician in Panjab, cutting across party lines, with individual assets worth USD 30M. Panjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann attacked the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led union for the ED raid. He said, 'They always target non-BJP states. If someone stoops in front of them, then all is good. This is not democracy. This is a dictatorship.' Meanwhile, Union Minister of State for Railways Ravneet Singh Bittu said Arora had misused the land allotted for industrial development on the Ludhiana-Chandigarh road. He alleged Arora had used the land to construct residential flats for private gain and said Chadha could turn a witness in the matter. Simultaneously, AAP withdrew Chadha's Z-plus category security cover but the BJP-led union government has reinstated it (earlier coverage).

Khadoor Sahib MP Amritpal Singh Photo by Indian Express

MP Amritpal’s Custody Likely to Be Extended; New Parties Surface in Panjab

The Punjab and Haryana High Court (PHHC) on 16 Apr dismissed Khadoor Sahib Member of Parliament (MP) Amritpal Singh’s challenge to his continued preventive detention under the National Security Act (NSA). In a related development, PHHC agreed to urgently hear the Panjab government’s fresh plea seeking permission to arrest him in Assam and keep him lodged in the Dibrugarh jail beyond the expiry of his NSA detention on 23 Apr. The bench asserted the grounds of preventive detention were clearly 'based on satisfaction founded upon objective material' in the Panjab government plea. It further said, if the petitioner was not preventively detained there was all likelihood of public order and the state’s security being prejudiced. The judgment is awaited. Meanwhile, on 17 Apr, speaking on the Women's Reservation Bill in Parliament, MP from Baramulla, Jammu & Kashmir Sheikh Abdul Rashid alias Engineer Rashid raised the issue of Amritpal's continuous detention when he too was in jail but the Parliament had allowed him to attend its sessions. Concurrently, three new political parties have emerged in Panjab before the Panjab Legislative Assembly (PLA) elections due in February 2027. Former All-India Youth Akali Dal president Kiranbir Singh Kang has launched the Punjabi Lokraj Party. Kang said his party is preparing to contest the PLA elections and promised to focus on job creation and curbing youth migration. Alongside, a social-political organization Misl Satluj (MS) has announced that it will contest the elections and field candidates across multiple constituencies. MS party president Ajaypal Singh Brar said the organization has a strong focus on public issues and emphasized that youth and women will play a significant role in the party’s campaign and representation. Earlier, on 7 Apr, Dr. Navjot Kaur Sidhu launched Bhartiya Rashtrawadi Party. Sidhu said her party would push opium cultivation in Panjab as a solution to the problem of drug abuse;the distribution of opium tablets to addicts is the only solution to the problem adding that it would also generate income for farmers and they can export opium to other countries and earn revenue; and her party will contest all seats in Panjab and that there is no question of any tie-up with any other party (earlier coverage).

Representational Photo by The Tribune

FCI Relaxes Wheat Quality Norms; BBMB Rules Amended

The Food Corporation of India (FCI) has recommended a relaxation in key quality parameters for wheat procurement allowing up to 20% shrivelled and broken grains, up to 80% lustre loss, and up to 6% damaged grains without any value cut. This comes as a relief to farmers because in March-end and April-start, farmers in Panjab protested since procurement officials refused to buy their grains on account of poor quality, caused by unseasonal rains. In 2026 the government’s wheat procurement is expected to decline by 69% due to late harvest and therefore late arrival of grains in grain markets. FCI and its agencies have procured 1.53 MMT from 1 Apr—a sharp decline from 5 MMT in the same period in 2025. The Minimum Support Price of wheat is USD 27.77 per quintal while grain market prices are at USD 24.71–25.78 per quintal. Additionally to help ease Panjab’s storage crisis, the union government has agreed to operate special trains to lift 15.5 MMT of rice and food grains from the state. Meanwhile, the union government amended the 1974 rules governing the Bhakra Beas Management Board (BBMB) and opened up top two posts—Irrigation and Power—to officers from across India. This removes the compulsory provision that reserves these posts for officers from Haryana and Panjab, respectively. The ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in Panjab, Indian National Congress, and Shiromani Akali Dal slammed the union government, accusing it of trying to dilute the state’s role in the BBMB. AAP leader Baltej Pannu alleged that the move reflects a larger attempt to take control of the state's river waters. Minister of State for Railways Ravneet Singh Bittu sought to allay concerns around the government notification. He said, ‘Only if there is no applicant from outside Panjab and Haryana will the posts be opened to applicants from other states. There is no way there would be no applicant from these two states.’ Concurrently, bowing to sustained pressure from farmers agitating outside the Greater Mohali Area Development Authority office in Sahibzada Ajit Singh Nagar for three weeks, the Panjab government has decided to enhance benefits and extend major new concessions under its land pooling policy (earlier coverage).

Representational Photo by The Tribune

Landowners Can Desilt Rivers; Panel Formed to Probe Illegal Mining

In a move to strengthen flood preparedness ahead of the monsoon, the Panjab cabinet approved landowners to undertake desilting of rivers, rivulets, and drains—including Satluj, Beas, and Siswan rivers—at their own expense, with the right to use the excavated material free of charge. The move aims to improve river flow across critical stretches but also shows how the efforts that the government should make are being pushed onto citizens’ shoulders. Meanwhile, residents of Khera Kalmot village, Ropar district have alleged that illegal mining continues on land attached by the Enforcement Directorate in connection with a money laundering case linked to illegal mining. Residents living near the attached property alleged that tippers laden with excavated material frequently passed through narrow unmetalled roads. The Punjab Mining Department has issued a recovery notice of USD 36,525 to the landowners. Furthermore, a joint committee, comprising officials from the Mining and Revenue departments of Ludhiana and Jalandhar, was formed to probe illegal mining in districts. Residents of Gorsian Khan Mohammad village, Ludhiana district brought the matter to the notice of Aam Aadmi Party leader Tejpal Singh Gill by showing videos of illegal mining in the area. Gill wrote a letter to Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann seeking investigation into the matter and alleging negligence by officials in the two districts. According to Gill, around a dozen overloaded vehicles and multiple machines engaged in mining were operating when he visited the spot with locals. Additionally, the National Green Tribunal (NGT) pulled up the Panjab Government for failing to meet its deadline on the demarcation of Satluj floodplain along a 47-km stretch in Ferozepur and Tarn Taran districts. According to the status report, large portions of the survey have been completed in the Nangal region, while work in the Harike area remains incomplete. Meanwhile, experts flagged concerns regarding Panjab’s efforts to replenish its groundwater noting that tube wells in neighboring Pakistan may be pumping out the subsurface water to irrigate the field and called for a comprehensive study of transboundary aquifers. Concurrently, the India Meteorological Department has issued a heatwave alert for Panjab suggesting maximum temperatures will cross 45℃ in the coming days (earlier coverage).

Photo by Indian Express

10.

The Mounting Crisis of Mental Health in Panjab

With the enactment of anti-sacrilege law—Jaagat Jot Sri Guru Granth Sahib Satkar—in Panjab, Chief Minister (CM) Bhagwant Mann said the culprits of sacrilege incidents could no longer escape the clutches of law and hailed the law as a step towards establishing communal harmony, while adding that it had been noticed that those accused of sacrilege pretended to be ‘mentally upset’. Since 2015, out of 597 incidents of sacrilege in Panjab and 791 of the accused, 15–30% have been found to be mentally unstable. The comment by CM might be misplaced, signaling not just a banal interpretation of mental health issues but also a structural crisis within the state on the matter. Panjab has no government-run homes for people with mental illness, leaving families as the primary caregivers when institutional support remains largely absent. Despite legal mandates for community-based facilities such as group homes under the Mental Healthcare Act 2017, the state grapples with a significant burden of untreated mental illness. As the state moves to count drug users through its census, the absence of a systematic push to treat mental illness exposes a critical gap in its public health response and lack of understanding on the subject. A 2025 survey conducted by Government Medical College and Hospital, Chandigarh with the National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences found a widespread prevalence of mental health conditions and gaps in access, awareness, and care. As per estimates presented in the Punjab and Haryana High Court there were 1.3M adults living with mental illnesses in the state in 2016. The survey was conducted across 60 clusters in four districts—Faridkot, Ludhiana, Moga, and Patiala—and 2,895 people aged 18 or older from 719 households were interviewed. The prevalence of lifetime and current mental morbidity was 17.94% and 13.42%, respectively. The lifetime prevalence of mood disorders was pegged at 7.58%, with depression accounting for nearly 95% of these cases. Neurotic and stress-related disorders had a current prevalence of 3.25%, while psychotic disorders affected a smaller but significant segment. The burden was higher among lower-income groups. In the end, it is not about ignoring those that are ‘mentally upset’ but understanding the real crisis at hand to really affect any significant change (earlier coverage).

Notes

Updates

UK: Sikh group crowdfunds to legally challenge UK’s anti-Muslim hostility definition (earlier coverage).
IN: 16 yrs after RTE rollout, Panjab begins to enroll EWS kids in private schools (earlier coverage).
IN: Electric vehicle adoption picks up pace in Panjab, sales zoom 48% in 2025.

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Opposition Defeats BJP’s Plan to Amend Women’s Bill & Bring in Delimitation