Punjab CM declares holiday on martyrdom day of Bhagat Singh

Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann declared a state holiday on March 23, the martyrdom day of legendary freedom fighter Bhagat Singh.He made the announcement in the Punjab Vidhan Sabha here on Tuesday. On the concluding day of the Vidhan Sabha session, Mann proposed a holiday in the state to mark the martyrdom day of Bhagat Singh.

Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann declared a state holiday on March 23, the martyrdom day of legendary freedom fighter Bhagat Singh.

He made the announcement in the Punjab Vidhan Sabha here on Tuesday. The House also passed a resolution to install statues of Bhagat Singh, Dr B R Ambedkar and first Sikh ruler Maharaja Ranjit Singh in the Vidhan Sabha. On the concluding day of the Vidhan Sabha session, Mann proposed a holiday in the state to mark the martyrdom day of Bhagat Singh. To this, Congress MLA Amarinder Singh Raja Warring said rather than announcing a holiday, it would be good if students in schools, colleges and employees be told about the life and sacrifice of Bhagat Singh. Reacting to Warring, Mann asked the former transport minister whether he knew when Bhagat Singh was born.

''You (Warring) do not know about it? It is September 28. There will be plays in schools and colleges depicting the life of the martyr on this day,'' Mann told the Assembly. Earlier, Mann proposed that statutes of Bhagat Singh and Dr B R Ambedkar be installed in the Vidhan Sabha. Hailing Mann's proposal, Congress legislator Partap Singh Bajwa urged that the statue of Maharaja Ranjit Singh be also installed.

Thereafter, the House passed a resolution on installing statues of Bhagat Singh, Dr BR Ambedkar and Maharaja Ranjit Singh in the Vidhan Sabha. The CM urged the Speaker to hold discussions on the Governor's address in the next Assembly session so that newly-elected MLAs could prepare themselves for this. The House approved Mann's proposal.