Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Saturday alleged that Governor Banwarilal Purohit was “threatening” to impose President’s rule in the state, while his counterparts in Manipur and Haryana are silent on the law and order situation there.

A day earlier, Purohit warned the CM that he could recommend President’s rule in the state and also launch criminal proceedings if the questions he had raised in the past in various letters were not answered.

“The threat which the governor gave to the people of Punjab, peace loving people of the state, I will call it a threat – of imposition of the President’s rule. He said I will recommend Article 356 and will recommend Governor’s rule,” Mann said at a press conference, as quoted by PTI.

The CM mentioned that Governor Purohit had written 16 letters to him, nine of which have been responded to, and the rest are awaiting reply. He said that the Governor shouldn’t be in a hurry and expect an immediate reply.

Mann said that while his government had been taking proactive steps to tackle the scourge of drugs, confiscating, raiding properties of smugglers, and going after gangsters with the formation of an Anti-Gangster Task Force, the governor claims law and order in the state is not good.

In his letter, the Governor had claimed that he received reports from various agencies on rampant drug abuse in Punjab. “It is common knowledge that they are available in chemist shops, a new trend is observed that they are being sold in the government controlled liquor vends.”

Responding to this, the CM said, “I want to ask Governor Sahab, has the Haryana Governor issued any notice to Haryana Chief Minister Khattar regarding what happened in Nuh, communal clashes and violence which took place there and curfew that had to be imposed? Did the Haryana governor write any letter to Khattar? No, because their government is also ruling at the Centre,” he said.

He said the Punjab governor was concerned about law and order in Punjab, but never gave a statement on Manipur, where ethnic violence is ongoing.

“Is the Constitution not applicable in Manipur?” In Uttar Pradesh, a murder takes place in front of journalists, “but will the UP Governor dare issue any letter to Yogi Adityanath questioning law and order” asked the CM, in an apparent reference to the killing of Mafia-turned-politician Atiq Ahmed in April this year.

Most people would not know of their governors’ names, except those in Punjab, Delhi, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and Telangana, because they all are ruled by the non-BJP governments, Mann claimed.

On Friday, Governor Purohit pointed out that he was yet to receive replies to his previous letters and told the CM that he had “reason to believe that there is failure of the Constitutional machinery” in the state.

“Before I…take final decision regarding sending a report to the President of India under Article 356 about the failure of the Constitutional mechanism and take a decision about initiating criminal proceedings under Section 124 of the IPC, I ask you to send me the requisite information sought for under my letters…as also in the matter of the steps taken by you concerning the problem of drugs in the state, failing which I would have no choice but to take action according to law and the Constitution,” read the letter.

A state is brought under direct rule of the Centre with the invocation of Article 356, usually after a report is sent by the Governor, while Section 124 of the IPC relates to assaulting or wrongfully restraining the President or a governor from exercising their lawful powers.