Panjab Opposition Targets CM for Appearing Drunk in Assembly

May

2026

The Panjab government conducted a special Legislative Assembly session on 1 May, Labor Day. In the session, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), Chief Minister (CM) Bhagwant Mann, in an unusual fit of rage, objected to Leader of Opposition (LoP) Pratap Singh Bajwa's statement that the eight special sessions convened by the AAP government in the past four years had achieved little and members could not ask public-oriented questions. Mann also objected to how Indian National Congress Member of the Legislative Assembly Sukhpal Singh Khaira was sitting cross-legged and using his phone. Mann’s demeanor, behavior, stammer, and language prompted the Opposition to conclude he was inebriated. LoP Bajwa criticized Mann for being drunk and called for an immediate breath analyzer test for all Assembly members. Assembly Speaker Kultar Singh Sandhwan rejected the demand. Mann’s issues with alcoholism go back to when he was an AAP Member of Parliament from 2014–19. In 2016, sitting next to Mann in the Parliament, fellow AAP MP Harinder Singh Khalsa had submitted a written request to the Speaker of the Indian Parliament stating that he could not bear the nauseating stink of alcohol anymore and requested that his seat be changed. Mann had also appeared drunk at the Bargari Insaaf Morcha (Justice Front) in June 2018. Soon after assuming power in April 2022, on a visit to Takht (throne) Sri Damdama Sahib, Shiromani Akali Dal chief Sukhbir Singh Badal had accused Mann of being drunk. In September 2022, the opposition claimed that while returning from Germany, the Lufthansa flight was delayed as the Panjab CM was deplaned because he was ‘too drunk to walk’. In February 2026, Mann had visited a wellness center in Bengaluru, Karnataka for detoxification. While Mann’s affinity for alcohol is his private issue, appearing inebriated in public, especially in the Assembly, raises questions about his ability to function as a head of state. After the ruckus in the Assembly session, Mann moved a Confidence Motion in the absence of opposition, seeking to reaffirm his government's mandate. The motion was seconded by Finance Minister Harpal Cheema. The Assembly passed the motion (earlier coverage).