Mohali:Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) National Convenor Arvind Kejriwal and Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann on Wednesday held the maiden meeting of the Punjab State Traders Commission in SAS Nagar, terming it a decisive step to end years of neglect and bureaucratic harassment faced by traders and shopkeepers in the state. They assured traders that they would no longer have to run from office to office, as the AAP government would take governance directly to markets to resolve their issues.

Addressing the gathering, Arvind Kejriwal said the initiative marked the beginning of a new era of business reforms in Punjab. He said the commission would simplify the tax system, bring transparency, end “tax terrorism” and remove unnecessary procedural hurdles. Echoing the sentiment, Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann said shopkeepers were the true patriots who drive the economy and expressed confidence that the commission would safeguard the welfare and dignity of traders across Punjab.

Kejriwal said, “Today, a new beginning is taking place for small shopkeepers, traders and markets, towards whom no one ever paid attention earlier. I congratulate all those who have been made members of these commissions at different levels and entrusted with this responsibility.” He noted that despite completing four years in power, people were openly praising the AAP government, unlike previous Congress and Shiromani Akali Dal governments, which, he said, never had the courage to face public feedback.

Reflecting on governance after four years, he said that while anti-incumbency is usually expected to set in, he heard traders appreciating the government’s work. “All of you sitting here are not party workers. You are independent individuals representing different markets and sectors. Listening to your feedback is a reflection of our confidence in our work,” he said.

Speaking on the treatment of traders, Kejriwal said successive governments had viewed traders with suspicion and harassed them through complex tax systems. “There is a kind of tax terrorism going on. Governments squeeze traders through taxes, and political parties remember them only during elections for donations,” he said, adding that no country could progress unless its small shopkeepers were protected and provided ease of doing business.

Sharing his personal background, Kejriwal said he came from a trading family and understood the hardships faced by shopkeepers. He highlighted that small traders work day and night, take risks, pay taxes, generate employment and contribute to social and charitable activities, yet are often subjected to harassment.

Explaining the structure of the Punjab State Traders Commission, Kejriwal said commissions would function at the state, district and constituency levels, with traders working alongside local police and administration. These bodies would hold meetings in markets, identify individual and market-level issues such as infrastructure gaps, civic amenities and law-and-order concerns, and resolve most of them at the local level itself. Policy-level issues would be recommended to the state government for necessary changes.

He said the purpose of the commission was to make the tax system simpler, more transparent and trader-friendly, and to propose concrete measures to reduce tax-related burdens. “Within the first three months, one round of meetings across all markets in Punjab will be completed. Issues that can be resolved on the spot will be addressed immediately,” he said.

Addressing the gathering, Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann said the initiative was unprecedented in Punjab and aimed exclusively at the welfare of small shopkeepers. He said the AAP was formed not to indulge in politics, but to change politics and promote value-based governance.

Highlighting his government’s people-centric approach, Mann said more than 61,000 youth had been given government jobs on merit, over 17 toll plazas had been closed to save money for the public, and vacant toll offices were being converted into Aam Aadmi Clinics. He urged traders to prepare a roadmap for strengthening the state’s economy, assuring that government revenue was being spent judiciously for Punjab’s development.

Terming shopkeepers as the true patriots of the nation, Mann said traders serve the country in the real sense by propelling the economy. He reiterated that governance would be run from villages and towns rather than confined to offices, and expressed confidence that the commission members would act as catalysts for Punjab’s growth.

Senior AAP leader and Punjab Prabhari Manish Sisodia said the prosperity of traders depended on the intent of the government. He said traders had long been forced to run from pillar to post, and the commission had been constituted to empower them and resolve their issues at their doorsteps. He added that this model would boost trade and commerce across Punjab and could serve as a template for trader welfare policies nationwide.