CHANDIGARH, MAY 11 — Aam Aadmi Party leaders and workers staged massive demonstrations across Punjab on Sunday, accusing the central government of using federal investigative agencies to intimidate political opponents. The protests, which included the surrounding of BJP district offices, followed recent Enforcement Directorate actions involving Cabinet Minister Sanjeev Arora.
Gatherings in Hoshiarpur, Patiala, and Mohali featured party members carrying placards and chanting slogans against the Union government. Protesters characterized the recent raids as a coordinated attempt to destabilize the state administration. In Hoshiarpur, demonstrators burned an effigy of the prime minister while labeling the central government’s tactics as an assault on democratic norms.
Senior AAP leader and Minister Harpal Singh Cheema stated that the BJP has transformed the ED, CBI, and Income Tax Department into political instruments. He noted that these agencies are often deployed when the ruling party at the Center faces political resistance.
“The BJP cannot digest the growing popularity of AAP and the pro-people work being done by the Bhagwant Mann government,” Cheema affirmed. He further declared that the Center is attempting to weaken democratically elected governments through intimidation after failing to defeat them at the polls.
In Patiala, Cabinet Minister Dr. Balbir Singh led a protest march where he described the federal actions as “politics of fear.” He suggested that the timing of these investigations is linked to the party’s refusal to yield to central pressure.
“They thought Punjab could be bullied through ED, CBI, and Income Tax raids,” Dr. Balbir Singh asserted. “But Punjabis have a history of standing against oppression and they will give a befitting reply to the BJP.”
The party maintained that the investigations are selective, citing instances where inquiries reportedly ceased after individuals joined the BJP. Leaders affirmed that volunteers would continue to mobilize on the streets to oppose what they termed the “murder of democracy.”
