Ludhiana/Hoshiarpur, May 10 : AAP on Sunday held protests across Punjab against the BJP over the ED action against Cabinet minister Sanjeev Arora, accusing the Centre of misusing central agencies against its party leaders.
At a few places, tension prevailed when the BJP and AAP workers came face to face, prompting police to intervene to avoid further escalation.
In Ludhiana, a scuffle broke out between AAP and BJP workers during a protest outside the BJP district office near the grain market on Gill Road.
AAP’s protests came a day after the Enforcement Directorate (ED) arrested Punjab Industries Minister Sanjeev Arora in connection with an alleged Rs 100 crore GST fraud-linked money laundering case involving certain entities linked to him.
Arora, 62, was taken into custody under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act following raids conducted at his official residence in Chandigarh’s Sector 2 on Saturday morning.
While AAP dubbed the ED raid at Arora’s residence and his subsequent arrest as a politically motivated act, Hampton Sky Realty Limited, at which the Punjab minister served as a director, said the company has faith in the legal process and is fully cooperating with all the statutory authorities and will continue to do so.
Arora’s arrest has triggered a fresh political confrontation between AAP and the BJP.
The ruling party in Punjab had given a call to ‘gherao’ the BJP offices across the state.
The AAP leaders and volunteers burnt effigies of the BJP-led Centre and raised slogans against it. They were also carrying placards which read ‘ED-BJP gathjod murdabad’.
In Ludhiana, a scuffle broke out between AAP and BJP workers during the protest outside the BJP district office.
AAP workers were protesting near the BJP office against Arora’s arrest when BJP workers arrived and staged a counter-protest. The situation escalated into a scuffle between both sides, giving a tough time to the police to avoid further escalation.
Punjab BJP state general secretary Anil Sareen alleged that AAP workers “attacked” BJP activists, leaving four of them injured.
During the protest, AAP workers burnt an effigy of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. In response, BJP workers burnt effigies of AAP convenor Arvind Kejriwal and Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, said BJP district president Rajnish Dhiman.
AAP’s protest was led by Cabinet Minister Hardip Singh Mundian, MLAs Ashok Prashar Pappi, Kulwant Singh Sidhu, Bhola Grewal and Mayor Inderjit Kaur.
Condemning the police’s role, Dhiman alleged that the police acted like AAP activists.
In Bathinda also, AAP and the BJP workers came face to face. Heavy police force was deployed during the protest, and they formed a human chain to avoid a clash.
Participating in a protest against the BJP in Jalandhar, Cabinet minister Mohinder Bhagat condemned the ED action against Arora and also slammed the BJP-led Union government for indulging in “high-handedness” against AAP leaders.
Bhagat alleged that the Centre was deploying all kinds of tactics to stop Punjab’s development.
“It is misusing the ED only against the AAP leaders by conducting raids at their premises. It clearly shows that the Union government is indulging in high handedness. Punjabis never tolerate high-handedness of anyone,” said Bhagwat while speaking to reporters.
In Hoshiarpur, AAP protesters, led by district rural president Gurwinder Singh Pabla, gathered outside the BJP office at local Shastri Market and raised slogans against the Centre and the ED.
AAP MLAs Brahm Shankar Jimpa, Jasvir Singh Raja Gill and Karambir Singh Ghuman, along with several party leaders and workers, participated in the demonstration.
Addressing the protesters, Jimpa alleged that central agencies such as the ED and CBI were being misused to target opposition parties, particularly AAP.
He claimed that when AAP was in power in Delhi, its leaders were repeatedly targeted through central agencies, and alleged that similar attempts were now being made in Punjab.
Raja Gill claimed that attempts were being made to create fear among opposition leaders through central agencies, but asserted that Punjabis had always stood united against “injustice and repression”.
