Bhagwant Mann Alleges Revenge Behind Delhi Airport Detention, Claims Customs Chief Is CEC Gyanesh Kumar’s Brother

Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann has accused the Centre of targeting him after he was stopped at Delhi airport following his return from Paris. He also claimed that Delhi airport Customs chief Manish Kumar is the brother of Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar.

The airport incident was meant as revenge against Mann and to hurt his public reputation, Mann said. The allegations by the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) regarding the arrest of the chief minister for almost three hours and issuing him a ₹50,000 challan are days old.

After visiting Paris, Mann accuses of harassment

In his account of the journey to France, Mann revealed that he had been invited to participate in a food festival where the Punjab State Cooperative Supply and Marketing Federation, Markfed had established stalls. He also stated that people from Uttar Pradesh and Chhattisgarh had also asked him to go to their stalls.

The chief minister had been refused permission to attend the festival and had been allowed to do so by High Court intervention, he said.

When Mann returned to Delhi airport, officials detained him and conducted a search of his luggage for approximately two hours, but he was unable to detect anything, Mann said. He also claimed a challan was issued to him.

Earlier the AAP had alleged that Mann was detained at Indira Gandhi International Airport for almost three hours and fined ₹50,000. The party said that officials were under pressure from the higher-ups and Punjab CM was being shamelessly humiliated by the Centre.

Mann also alleged that they were taking chances to take revenge on him. But the link between the Customs chief and the CEC, and the allegation of political vendetta, have yet to be proved independently.

In a separate statement, Shiromani Akali Dal leader Bikram Singh Majithia had claimed that Mann and his wife Gurpreet Kaur were detained due to some excess luggage or money that was not permitted.

In his address, Mann has called what he describes as a “political tendency” a “democratically elected dictator”, and charges those who are elected in a democratic process with having authoritarian power.

He also stated that the democratic institutions were being undermined, and doubted the fairness of the electoral process.

“Punjab is a state which has been a voice of rebellion from its very inception and fights against injustice and oppression of the people,” Mann said in defending his government's stance on issues concerning the people.

CM raises concerns on electoral rolls

Admanning accused of allegedly deleting names from electoral rolls, saying 14 crore voters were deleted from the electoral list. He said voting rights should not be determined by those in power.

The chief minister claimed that democratic institutions were facing pressure and there was a loss of trust in them. He also said that the electoral process was being manipulated to serve the needs of certain groups.

Mann spoke about the electoral arrangements in both Haryana and Maharashtra, and said he was confident AAP can come back to power in Punjab.

The report did not substantiate claims about voter deletions and alleged electoral manipulation made by him.

ED, CBI Also Come Under Mann’s Criticism

The Lahore High Court has directed the Punjab government to provide evidence supporting its claims that the chief minister was not responsible for registering cases against the centre within a year of the elections.The Lahore High Court has asked the Punjab government to present evidence to show that it was not related to the registration of cases against the Centre within one year of the elections.

He said that some cases have been withdrawn since the elections and now Punjab is going through the same stage.

The charges come on the heels of the continuing political tussle between the Centre and the Punjab government that has been led by the AAP government. Mann has described the arrest episode at the airport as being part of a larger campaign of political pressure, but allegations against the Customs chief and his purported motive for the arrest have not been substantiated.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Susmita Modak

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Always love to raise the unraised matter. In a world of worries, I am always ready to come over my comfort zone and taking the step ahead of spreading awareness.

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