Harpal Singh Cheema Explained

Harpal Singh Cheema
Birth Date:1974 2, df=yes
Birth Place:Nabha, Punjab, India
Nationality:Indian
Alma Mater:Punjabi University, Patiala
Office:Cabinet Minister, Government of Punjab
Predecessor:Manpreet Singh Badal
Governor:Banwarilal Purohit
1Blankname:Chief Minister
1Namedata:Bhagwant Mann
Subterm:Cabinet
Suboffice:Mann ministry
2Blankname:Ministry and Departments
2Namedata:
Term Start:21 March 2022
Office1:Punjab Cabinet minister for Dept. of Cooperation
Term Start1:21 March 2022
Term End1:4 July 2022
Predecessor1:Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa
Successor1:Bhagwant Mann
Office2:Member of the Punjab Legislative Assembly[2]
Constituency2:Dirba
Term Start2:11 March 2017
Predecessor2:Balvir Singh
Party:Aam Aadmi Party
Office3:Leader of the Opposition in Punjab Legislative assembly
Term Start3:27 July 2018
Term End3:10 March 2022
Predecessor3:Sukhpal Singh Khaira
Successor3:Pratap Singh Bajwa
Occupation:Politician
Residence:Dirba

Harpal Singh Cheema (born 10 February 1974) is an Aam Aadmi Party MLA from Dirba Assembly constituency located in Sangrur District, Punjab.[3] In March 2022, he became first BobA to be a finance minister of Punjab.[4] He joined the Aam Aadmi Party just before the 2017 Punjab Legislative Assembly election. He contested and won the election from Dirba Assembly constituency against a popular Punjabi Kabbadi player Gulzar Singh Moonak from Shiromani Akali Dal and Ajaib Singh Ratolan from Indian National Congress.[5] In July 2018 he was appointed leader of opposition of Punjab Legislative Assembly.[6]

Career

A graduate from Government Ranbir College, Sangrur, and having done his LLB from Punjabi University, Patiala, he also participated in student politics as the campus president of Left-leaning Students' Federation of India (SFI) while studying law.[7] He led the Sangrur Bar Association in 2014.[8] As a lawyer, he is also fighting AAP’s Delhi MLA Naresh Yadav’s case in the district courts over accusations of Quran desecration in Malerkotla in 2016.

Member of Legislative Assembly, 2017–2022

In a triangular fight from Dirba, he defeated Congress candidate Ajaib Singh Ratol and Shiromani Akali Dal’s Gulzar Singh.

In 2017–2018 he was in the Punjab Assembly committee on government assurances. From 2017 to 2019, he was in the committee on welfare of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes and Other Backward Class.[9]

Committee assignments of Punjab Legislative Assembly

Leader of opposition

In Fifteenth Punjab Legislative Assembly Aam Aadmi Party was the main opposition party. Since July 2018, Cheema served as the leader of opposition[10] with Saravjit Kaur Manuke as the deputy leader of opposition.[11] His term as the leader of the opposition ended with the dissolution of the Fifteenth Punjab assembly on 11 March 2022. The dissolution was necessitated after the results of the election were declared on 10 March.[12] [13]

Member of Legislative Assembly, 2022–2027

He was elected as the MLA in the 2022 Punjab Legislative Assembly election. He represented the Dirba Assembly constituency in the Punjab Legislative Assembly.[14] [15] Cheema took oath as a cabinet minister along with nine other MLAs on 19 March at Guru Nanak Dev auditorium of Punjab Raj Bhavan in Chandigarh.[16] [17] The Aam Aadmi Party gained a strong 79% majority in the sixteenth Punjab Legislative Assembly by winning 92 out of 117 seats in the 2022 Punjab Legislative Assembly election. MP Bhagwant Mann was sworn in as Chief Minister on 16 March 2022.[18]

In September 2022, Aam Aadmi Party, the ruling party in Punjab, accused BJP of spending ₹1375 Crore in Punjab to bribe the AAP MLAs under Operation Lotus. Punjab's Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema said in a press conference, "Our MLAs have been approached with offers of up to Rs 25 crore to break away from AAP. The MLAs were told: “bade bau ji se milwayenge”. These MLAs have also been offered big posts. They were told that if you get more MLAs along, you would be given up to Rs 75 crore."[19] [20]

Cabinet Minister

As a cabinet minister in the Mann ministry, Cheema was given the charge of five departments of the Punjab Government:[21]

  1. Department of Finance
  2. Department of Planning
  3. Department of Programme Implementation
  4. Department of Excise & Taxation
  5. Department of Cooperation

On 5 July, Bhagwant Mann announced the expansion of his cabinet of ministers with five new ministers to the departments of Punjab state government. Cheema's charge of Cooperation ministry ended on 5 July with CM Bhagwant Mann taking the charge of the same. Cheema continued to hold the charge of following departments.[22]

  1. Department of Finance
  2. Department of Planning
  3. Department of Programme Implementation
  4. Department of Excise & Taxation

Family

Son of Mehar Singh and Manjeet Kaur, he was born in Cheema village in Dhuri subdivision, he has five siblings, two brothers and three sisters. Now he lives in Sangrur with his wife and a daughter.

Notes and References

  1. News: Mann keeps Home, 26 others, gives Finance to Cheema; Mines to Bains . 23 March 2022 . 22 March 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220323164504/https://indianexpress.com/article/cities/chandigarh/bhagwant-mann-keeps-home-harpal-singh-cheema-gets-finance-7830421/ . 23 March 2022 . en.
  2. http://www.punjabassembly.nic.in/index.php/members/detail/72 Members detail punjabassembly.nic.in
  3. Web site: Government of Punjab, India. punjab.gov.in. en-US. 2018-07-26.
  4. Web site: Harpal Singh Cheema becomes first Dalit leader to be Finance Minister of Punjab . Punjab News Express . 2022-03-27 . . 2022-03-27.
  5. Web site: 2017 Dirba - Punjab Assembly Election Winner, LIVE Results & Latest News: Election Dates, Polling Schedule, Election Results & Live Election Updates. 2021-06-17. India.com. en.
  6. News: AAP replaces Punjab leader of opposition Sukhpal Khaira with Harpal Singh Cheema - Times of India. The Times of India. 2018-07-26.
  7. Web site: The Tribune India . Three Punjab Cabinet ministers started political innings with Left politics . The Tribune . 2022-03-20 . 2022-03-27.
  8. News: From Bar politics to leader of oppn in Punjab assembly, AAP’s Cheema emerges as Dalit leader . 22 June 2020 . The Hindustan Times . 27 July 2018 . 16 October 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20201016113314/https://www.hindustantimes.com/punjab/from-bar-politics-to-leader-of-oppn-in-punjab-assembly-aap-s-cheema-emerges-as-dalit-leader/story-fGms0I8JDGtn6iCXdFivQM.html . dead .
  9. News: The playing 11: CM Bhagwant Mann’s cabinet ministers . 22 March 2022 . The Indian Express . 20 March 2022 . en.
  10. Web site: AAP removes Khaira, appoints Harpal Cheema as leader of opposition . The Tribune . 2018-07-27 . 2018-07-27.
  11. Web site: AAP's new leaders after election.
  12. News: Punjab Governor dissolves 15th Punjab Assembly . 27 March 2022 . The Statesman . 11 March 2022.
  13. News: Punjab Cabinet recommends Governor for dissolution of 15th Punjab Assembly . 27 March 2022 . The Statesman . 11 March 2022.
  14. News: Pioneer . The . Kejriwal promised to end ‘Parcha Raj’, says all fake cases to be dismissed . 12 March 2022 . The Pioneer . en.
  15. News: AAP wins 5 of 7 segments in Hoshiarpur district . 12 March 2022 . Hindustan Times . 10 March 2022 . en.
  16. News: Ten Punjab ministers to take oath on Saturday . 18 March 2022 . Tribuneindia News Service . 18 March 2022 . en . 18 March 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220318092034/https://www.tribuneindia.com/news/punjab/punjab-ministers-to-take-oath-on-saturday-378869 . live .
  17. News: 25,000 Government Jobs For Punjab: New Chief Minister's 1st Decision . 19 March 2022 . NDTV.com . Press Trust of India . 19 March 2022 . 19 March 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220319125442/https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/25-000-government-jobs-for-punjab-new-chief-minister-bhagwant-manns-1st-decision-2831372 . live .
  18. News: 16 March 2022 . AAP's Bhagwant Mann sworn in as Punjab Chief Minister . en-IN . The Hindu . 22 March 2022 . 0971-751X.
  19. News: BJP trying to topple AAP government in Punjab, offering Rs 25 crore to MLAs: Minister . 13 September 2022 . Tribuneindia News Service . 13 September 2022 . en.
  20. News: BJP is calling AAP MLAs, offering money and threatening to join: Punjab minister . 13 September 2022 . The Indian Express . 13 September 2022 . en.
  21. News: Punjab portfolios announced; CM Mann keeps Home and Vigilance, Cheema gets Finance, Singla Health, Harbhajan Power . 21 March 2022 . Tribuneindia News Service . 21 March 2022 . en.
  22. News: Punjab Cabinet expansion: Anmol Gagan gets tourism; Indervir Nijjar local bodies, Chetan Singh health . 5 July 2022 . Tribune India News Service . 5 July 2022.