The Punjab tableau did not fit with the “broader themes” of this year’s tableau, according to Ministry of Defence sources on Sunday, in response to accusations made by Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann regarding discrimination in the selection of tableauaux for the Republic Day Parade 2024. The sources state that during the Expert Committee’s initial three rounds of meetings, the Punjab tableau proposal was taken into consideration. Following the third round of meetings, the Expert Committee decided not to move forward with the Punjab tableau because it did not fit with the larger themes of this year’s tableau, according to the sources. Moreover, West Bengal’s sources were turned down for the same reasons, according to MoD sources.
While the tableau proposal of West Bengal was considered in the first two rounds of meetings of the Expert Committee. After the second round of meetings, the tableau of West Bengal could not be taken forward by the Expert Committee for further consideration for not aligning with the broader themes of this year’s tableau, the sources added.
For Republic Day Parade 2024, 30 States/UTs had shown their willingness to participate in the parade including the State of Punjab and West Bengal, the sources said.
Out of these 30 States/UTs, like every year, only 15-16 States/UTs will be finally selected to present their tableaux in the Republic Day Parade 2024, it added.