Taking up a public interest litigation “concerning the proposed borrowing of approximately Rs 15,000 crore by GMADA through bonds, debentures, bank loans or other debt instruments”, the Punjab and Haryana High Court on Monday asked the Accountant-General — based at Chandigarh — to remain present in the Court on September 15, the next date of hearing in the matter.“Before we proceed any further in the matter, we intend to invite certain factual clarifications with regard to issues raised in the matter. The State shall be at liberty to clarify facts, specifically with regard to the letter dated June 3 sent by the Accountant-General (Audit-I), Punjab. The Accountant General, based at Chandigarh, is also requested to remain present in the Court, on the next date of hearing,” the Bench of Chief Justice Ashwani Kumar Mishra and Justice Rohit Kapoor noted.Jaskirat Singh and other petitioners, through senior counsel Baltej Singh Sidhu, along with advocates Shehbaz Thind, Himmat Singh Sidhu and Reema, contended that they were public-spirited persons having no personal, commercial or pecuniary interest in the matter and had earlier pursued issues concerning environment, civic amenities and public funds.It was added that the State’s financial position formed an important background. The CAG State Finances Audit Report for FY 2023-24 recorded outstanding debt and liabilities of approximately Rs 3,46,185.07 crore as on March 31, 2024, while the Punjab Budget for FY 2026-27 estimates substantial revenue and fiscal deficits and continuing dependence upon borrowings.The Bench was told that the State also had substantial recurring subsidy and welfare commitments, while an RTI-based report recorded expenditure of approximately Rs 317.17 crore on print-media advertisements between 2022 and March 2025.Immediately before the present transaction, approximately Rs 2,500 crore was arranged for GMADA from different development authorities and its own reserves. The arrangement was the subject matter of a PIL decided on May 7.Thereafter, the Accountant-General (Audit-I), by communication dated June 3 questioned the transfer and accounting of approximately Rs 6,400 crore remitted by GMADA to the State Treasury and also recorded that a premature transfer of approximately Rs 927.90 crore had caused liquidity pressure upon GMADA, forcing it to resort to commercial overdrafts.It was added that on June 24, GMADA issued the “RFP” for raising approximately Rs 15,000 crore. The official budget material available with the petitioners showed substantial existing expenditure and loan repayment obligations, making the project-wise requirement and repayment capacity directly relevant.A report dated June 27 described the proposal as GMADA’s biggest-ever fund-raising exercise and stated that GMADA was already carrying debt of nearly Rs 8,000 crore. It was later reported that M/s Tipsons Consultancy Services Private Limited had been selected/recommended as Merchant Banker-cum-Fund “Arranger at a fee of approximately Rs 191.16 crore.” “The petitioners added GMADA’s own record showed that it has earlier directly obtained large term loans from public-sector banks, including Bank of Maharashtra, Punjab National Bank and State Bank of India, without routing such borrowing through a merchant banker. This makes the basis of the reported arranger fee a matter requiring examination,” it said.The petitioners added: “It was further reported that the State Government sought another approximately Rs 1,000 crore from Development Authorities, including approximately Rs 300 crore from GMADA, and that PSPCL was also proposing to raise approximately Rs 10,000 crore through a merchant banker. The petitioners therefore seek production and examination of the complete financial and decision-making record before substantial public funds are committed and third-party rights are created. Hence, the present public interest litigation.”