Punjab Minister Found to Have Managed a “Non-Existent” Department for 20 Months

Punjab Minister Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal has been found to have been overseeing a non-existent department for nearly 20 months, according to a report by The Tribune. The revelation comes from a gazette notification issued by the Punjab Chief Secretary. The notification states that the department of administrative reforms, which had been assigned to Dhaliwal, is not operational as of now.

"In partial modification of the previous Punjab government notification regarding the allocation of portfolios, among ministers, the department of administrative reforms earlier allotted to Dhaliwal is not in existence as on date,” reads the document.

As of February 7, 2025, Dhaliwal's portfolio has been limited to the Department of NRI Affairs, following an amendment made by Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwat Mann. This change came into effect after the Punjab Cabinet reshuffled his roles.

Initially, Dhaliwal was responsible for the agriculture and farmers welfare portfolio. However, in May 2023, he was moved from this role in a Cabinet reshuffle and assigned the administrative reforms department. Despite a subsequent reshuffle in September 2024, Dhaliwal retained the portfolio of administrative reforms, which, as it turns out, was merely a title on paper.

According to sources who spoke to The Tribune, the department had no staff, and there were no meetings held under its name. One source revealed to The Indian Express that Dhaliwal had even requested clarity on the matter, as the department lacked a secretary, further underlining its non-functioning status.

The opposition has been quick to criticise the Punjab government over this blunder. BJP leader Amit Malviya expressed disbelief over the oversight, writing on X, “You can imagine the crisis in Punjab government if it took nearly 20 months to realise that a department assigned to one of its prominent ministers never actually existed. Arvind Kejriwal is a charlatan who must be banished from public life.”

Pradeep Bhandari, National Spokesperson for the BJP, also slammed the AAP-led Punjab government, calling it a "joke." He added, "AAP has made governance in Punjab a joke! The AAP Minister ran a department for 20 months which never existed! Imagine for 20 months the CM did not even know that a minister was running a 'NON EXISTENT DEPARTMENT.'"​