Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Punjab President Kewal Singh Dhillon on Tuesday, 10 November 2026, launched a sharp attack on the Bhagwant Mann-led Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government in Punjab over its alleged failure to manage crop residue, asserting that the ruling party cannot deflect from its four-and-a-half-year track record by holding press conferences that blame Delhi.

The Kejriwal Commitment Revisited

Dhillon pointed to a specific, dateable promise: on 4 November 2022, AAP's national convener Arvind Kejriwal publicly accepted joint responsibility for farm fires alongside Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, reportedly seeking one year to resolve the stubble-burning crisis. More than four years into the AAP government's tenure, Dhillon argued, the Mann administration has failed to deliver accessible alternatives to stubble burning, leaving farmers without viable options during the critical sowing window.

Five Hard Questions for the AAP Government

The BJP state president posed five pointed questions to the ruling dispensation, targeting specific schemes and financial accountability.

First, Dhillon asked about the fate of the Pusa bio-decomposer — a product heavily promoted by AAP as a low-cost solution to stubble — seeking details on how many acres were sprayed, the total state expenditure, and what measurable results were achieved.

Second, he demanded a full accounting of the ₹2,056.50 crore released by the Central government to Punjab under the Crop Residue Management (CRM) Scheme up to 2025-26, questioning how much of that amount actually reached farmers at the ground level.

Third, Dhillon raised doubts over the government's claim of deploying 94,456 CRM machines, asking how many are currently operational, how many Custom Hiring Centres are functional, and whether marginal farmers can realistically access this equipment during the narrow harvesting and sowing window.

Fourth, he questioned why the Punjab government failed to independently fund its own promised ₹2,500 per acre cash incentive for farmers who avoid stubble burning — drawing a pointed comparison with Haryana, which reportedly provides ₹1,000 to ₹1,200 per acre to its farmers for the same purpose.

Fifth, the BJP leader challenged the state government's decision to register first information reports (FIRs) against small farmers and to make punitive red entries in revenue records, calling it a move to mask administrative failure rather than address its root causes.

Demands Placed Before the State Government

Dhillon formally demanded an immediate, independent audit of CRM machinery funds, an immediate rollback of all punitive red entries made against farmers in revenue records, and the introduction of practical per-acre financial support to incentivise farmers to adopt stubble management alternatives.

Why This Matters

Stubble burning in Punjab and neighbouring Haryana is a perennial contributor to the severe winter air pollution that blankets northern India each year, causing health crises in Delhi and beyond. The political blame game between the AAP-led state governments and the Centre has intensified in recent years, with the Supreme Court of India having previously flagged inaction by state administrations. This latest salvo from the BJP comes as the peak paddy-harvesting season draws to a close and farm fire counts for 2026 are under close public scrutiny. The AAP government had not issued a formal response to Dhillon's specific questions at the time of this report.