Akali Dal Accuses AAP Government of 'Undeclared Emergency' in Punjab

Chandigarh, Jul 2 (PTI): Shiromani Akali Dal chief Sukhbir Singh Badal on Wednesday alleged that several Akali workers headed to Mohali to support party leader Bikram Singh Majithia, who is facing arrest in a disproportionate assets case, have been detained by police.

The party claims that many of its workers in locations such as Amritsar, Beas, and other areas have been "detained" at their homes.

Majithia is scheduled to appear in a Mohali court on Wednesday, as his seven-day vigilance remand concludes.

Significant police presence has been noted outside the Vigilance Bureau (VB) office and the district court complex in Mohali.

Badal accused the Bhagwant Mann-led AAP government of imposing an "undeclared emergency" in Punjab.

"Bhagwant Mann has imposed an UNDECLARED EMERGENCY in Punjab.

Akali workers heading to Mohali today to show solidarity with S Bikram Singh Majithia, who the Aam Aadmi Party government has falsely accused, are being detained at home and stopped at 'nakas' set on major roads," Badal stated on X.

"These repressive actions reek of cowardice.

It is evident that Chief Minister @BhagwantMann is unnerved by the overwhelming support for Bikram," Badal declared.

"I want to make it clear - the @Akali_Dal_ and its workers will not be discouraged by these repressive actions.

Akalis have, in the past, countered repression with popular movements.

We will once again teach a befitting lesson to the corrupt and dictatorial @AamAadmiParty regime with the support of Punjabis," he added.

The VB detained Majithia on June 25 for his alleged role in laundering over Rs 540 crore of "drug money."

He was placed on a seven-day vigilance remand on June 26 by a Mohali court.

In the FIR against Majithia, the VB asserted that preliminary investigations showed over Rs 540 crore of "drug money" was laundered through various avenues, allegedly facilitated by Majithia.

The FIR is part of an ongoing investigation by a Punjab Police Special Investigation Team into the 2021 drugs case.

Majithia was charged in 2021 under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, based on a 2018 report from the anti-drug Special Task Force.

He spent over five months in Patiala jail for the case, being released in August 2022 after the Punjab and Haryana High Court granted him bail.

(Only the headline of this report may have been reworked by Editorji; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)