Chandigarh, Nov 3 Punjab Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema on Tuesday called former Chief Minister and Congress leader Charanjit Singh Channi’s statements about the state’s lottery operations “baseless, misleading, and a desperate attempt to stay politically relevant”.
Cheema said, “The data exposes the gross financial mismanagement under the previous Congress regime while highlighting the unprecedented transparency and revenue growth achieved under the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government.”
Drawing a sharp contrast between the Congress and AAP governments in Punjab, he said, “During Channi’s tenure in the financial year 2021-22, the net receipts from state lotteries stood at a mere Rs 19.33 crore, while Goods and Services Tax (GST) collections remained stagnant at Rs 32.77 crore.”
Congress MP Channi had recently alleged irregularities in the lottery department and had also claimed a drop in lottery revenue.
Cheema said under the Bhagwant Mann government, net receipts have surged to a record Rs 70.59 crore in the financial year 2025-26. Even in the current financial year 2026-27, up to October 31, the state has already secured net receipts of Rs 54.21 crore, he said.
“Furthermore, the state recorded historic GST collections from lotteries, which have nearly tripled under the current government. These collections jumped from Rs 32.77 crore in 2021-22 to a staggering Rs 93.09 crore in 2025-26. For the current financial year, GST collections up to October 2026 stand at Rs 59.43 crore,” Cheema said in a statement.
“When we look at the combined revenue from lotteries, comprising both net receipts and GST, the Congress government managed to generate only around Rs 52.10 crore in 2021-22. In stark contrast, our government generated over Rs 163.68 crore in 2025-26. That is a growth of more than 200 per cent,” he said.
Providing a year-on-year comparison of total revenue generation, Cheema said, “During the Congress regime, total annual revenue remained low, starting at a mere Rs 7.47 crore in 2017-18, rising to Rs 45.56 crore in 2018-19, Rs 38.67 crore in 2019-20 and Rs 59.87 crore in 2020-21, before declining to Rs 52.10 crore in 2021-22.”
He pointed out, “In stark contrast, ever since the Mann government took charge and reformed the system, the financial trajectory has witnessed a consistent upward trend. Following a transition phase in 2022-23, with revenues of Rs 47.47 crore, collections accelerated to Rs 60.01 crore in 2023-24, broke previous records with Rs 103.54 crore in 2024-25 and reached a historic Rs 163.68 crore in 2025-26.”
He said in the current financial year 2026-27, the total collection had already crossed Rs 113.64 crore by October alone, more than double what the previous government managed in its entire final year.
Cheema asked Channi to verify his facts before making public statements.
(PTI News)
