Punjab minister Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal has been discovered to have overseen a non-existent department within the ministry for nearly 20 months, as reported by The Tribune, referencing a gazette notification from the state’s chief secretary. The notification stated, “In partial modification of the previous Punjab government notification concerning the allocation of portfolios among ministers, the department of administrative reforms previously assigned to Dhaliwal is currently non-existent.” Consequently, Aam Aadmi Party leader Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal will now solely manage the portfolio of NRI affairs in the Punjab cabinet.
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The notification indicated that the decision to modify Dhaliwal’s portfolio, as directed by Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwat Mann, became effective on February 7, 2025. Initially, Dhaliwal was responsible for the agriculture and farmers welfare portfolio, from which he was reassigned during a Cabinet reshuffle in May 2023. Subsequently, he was appointed to oversee the administrative reforms department. Despite another Cabinet reshuffle occurring in September 2024, Dhaliwal retained his position in the department, which existed solely on paper.
Sources, who chose to remain anonymous, informed The Tribune that there were no personnel assigned to the administrative reforms department, nor had any meetings been conducted. Additionally, Dhaliwal has recently garnered attention as the minister of NRI affairs, managing the arrival of US deportees in Amritsar.
(This story is published from a syndicated feed)
