A significant political dispute has emerged in Mohali after the Greater Mohali Area Development Authority (GMADA) issued a single, consolidated tender valued at over Rs 1,000 crore for multiple development projects in the city. The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) has launched a strong objection, claiming the move will devastate local small-scale contractors and lead to large-scale corruption.
Allegations of Deliberate Exclusion and Monopoly
Parvinder Singh Sohana, the SAD Mohali chief sevadar, spearheaded the criticism on January 5, 2026. He accused the state government of designing a policy that actively promotes corruption while pushing thousands of small contractors and their families towards unemployment. Sohana detailed that GMADA had previously transferred several roads to the Mohali Municipal Corporation for maintenance, spending crores. He alleged these roads have now been taken back specifically to inflate the scope of work to justify the colossal tender, as the road length under GMADA's direct control was insufficient.
"By clubbing tenders for road works, horticulture, and public health engineering into one package worth more than Rs 1,000 crore, small contractors are being deliberately forced out of the system," Sohana stated. He warned this creates a dangerous monopoly, drawing a parallel to recent issues in the aviation sector where passengers suffered due to the collapse of a single dominant airline.
Broader Accusations of Land and Resource Misuse
The SAD leader expanded his allegations beyond the tender. He claimed that prime-location sites in Mohali, including one of Asia's best air-conditioned vegetable markets built under the leadership of late Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal, are being readied for sale for crores of rupees. Furthermore, he alleged a major scam involving shamlat (common) lands of 14 recently merged villages.
"In villages like Lakhnour, where the market price is Rs 20 crore per acre, the government is allegedly taking panchayat land at just Rs 4 crore per acre to hand it over to builders," Sohana claimed, labeling it a massive fraud against the public.
SAD's Stance and Threatened Actions
Reiterating the party's commitment, Sohana asserted that the SAD would stand firmly with the affected contractors and employees. He dismissed the government's employment generation claims, stating that on the ground, small contractors are being reduced to daily wage labourers.
"This is public money, collected through taxes, but the government is preparing to hand it over to corporate houses and, through that route, fill its own pockets," he alleged. Concluding with a firm warning, the SAD district president declared that injustice to small contractors would not be tolerated. "If required, we will fight a legal battle and also take to the streets. After proper legal preparation, we will knock on the doors of the courts as well," Sohana vowed, signaling a protracted political and legal confrontation over the issue.
