In a sharp escalation of the pitched political battle in Punjab, BJP leaders have filed a complaint seeking a case against Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann over his controversial remarks attributing political motives to recent explosions in the state ahead of the 2027 elections. Mann also allegedly linked the BJP to the blasts.
On Thursday, a BJP delegation led by state party president Sunil Jakhar went to meet the Punjab Director General of Police in Chandigarh. Jakhar said DGP Gaurav Yadav was not present and they met Special DGP AS Rai and lodged their complaint.
In the complaint, the delegation alleged that the Punjab chief minister made "false, inflammatory and defamatory" statements during a public address on Wednesday, in which he purportedly linked the twin explosions near the BSF Frontier Headquarters in Jalandhar and an Army camp in Amritsar to the BJP.
Mann's remarks, it claimed, were "baseless and unsubstantiated," and had the potential to incite public unrest, communal disharmony and political hostility in the sensitive border state.
The demand for a case comes amid heightened political tensions in Punjab over law and order and national security concerns
Diverting Attention
The complaint alleged that by publicly attributing motives and responsibility without official findings, the chief minister attempted to divert attention from the actual perpetrators and interfere with the ongoing investigation into the blasts.
Such statements, it argued, could undermine public confidence in investigative agencies and create fear and insecurity among citizens.
The BJP delegation also accused Mann of linking the security incidents with possible acts of religious desecration, alleging that such assertions could inflame communal sentiments and disturb social harmony in Punjab.
The complaint sought the registration of an FIR against the chief minister under sections related to promoting enmity between groups, acts prejudicial to national integration, provocation likely to disturb public peace, criminal defamation, and statements conducing to public mischief.
