Punjab CM Video Row: Sukhbir Badal Thanks Haryana CM for FIR
A day after Gurugram police arrested two men in connection with a viral video purportedly showing Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann involved in a sacrilegious act, Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president Sukhbir Singh Badal thanked Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini for registering an FIR. Badal also demanded that multiple cases be filed against Mann for allegedly presenting false reports before the Sangat and misusing Punjab Police officials for serious crimes.
According to Badal, the truth behind the false forensic lab reports arranged by Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann—accused of being anti-Panth and guilty of sacrilege—has come to light through video evidence. The SAD chief lambasted the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government for attempting to tailor a forensic report to give Mann a clean chit.
Allegations of Bribery and Fabricated Reports
Senior Akali leader Bikram Singh Majithia claimed on Tuesday that police officers allegedly paid Rs 10 lakh to tailor the forensic report that exonerated Mann in the blasphemous act video. Majithia released a video purportedly showing a meeting between police officials and laboratory owners, along with what he described as a video confession of an individual who allegedly prepared the report under pressure from the Chief Minister and police officers. The footage reportedly shows police officials meeting a forensic expert at a hotel in Gurugram, negotiating payment in exchange for fabricated reports intended to discredit Akal Takht.
Akal Takht’s Response and Political Fallout
Akal Takht Jathedar Giani Kuldeep Singh Gargaj, in a Facebook post, said, “Vadda Tera Darbar, Sacha Tudh Takhat” (Great is Your Court, and True is Your Throne). While interacting with the press, Gargaj demanded a thorough probe into the matter. The political row erupted after a five-member jathedar panel of Akal Takht declared Mann a “Guru-Dokhi” (anti-Guru) and “Khalsa Panth Virodhi” (opposed to the Khalsa Panth) over the alleged sacrilege video, following forensic reports commissioned by Akal Takht that concluded the viral clip was authentic and not AI-generated. In response, CM Mann stated that the person shown in the video committing the blasphemous act was not him.
