Decode Politics: Why dirt keeps swirling about a luxury resort in Punjab

At the centre of a controversy once again, the Oberoi Sukhvilas Spa Resort, named for and partly owned by former Punjab Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal, is in the crosshairs of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government.

CM Bhagwant Mann has claimed that the resort – located in Palanpur village outside Chandigarh and run by the Oberoi Group – has cost the state exchequer Rs 108 crore since it became operational in 2015 during the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD)-BJP government’s tenure.

So what is this resort, and what is the controversy about?

What is CM Mann claiming?

According to Mann, the various tax exemptions Sukhvilas had received from the then SAD-BJP government, which was in power from 2007 to 2017, the period during which the resort was built and opened, had cost the state more than Rs 108 crore.

As per figures shared by the AAP government, the state GST and VAT, applicable at 75% each, was waived off for a 10-year period between May 2015 and May 2026, amounting to a write-off of Rs 85.85 crore. The “100% exempted electricity duties” amounted to another Rs 11.45 crore, while the road leading to the hotel, constructed by the Greater Mohali Area Development Authority, cost Rs 4.13 crore, Mann said.

He said his government will examine why the tax exemptions were given, how an “eco-tourism law” was introduced and amended to ensure the project received permission for Change of Land Use (CLU), and accordingly take action.

“This is the people’s money. We will recover this amount…The advocate-general is looking into it… All former ministers who were involved in giving permissions would also be investigated,” Mann said. Asked whether the property would be sealed, the CM said, “You people want to see JCB machines? Your wishes