The ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in Punjab was under attack from Opposition parties on Wednesday (August 7, 2024), following the revelation that a television interview of gangster Lawrence Bishnoi, who is facing multiple charges, had been conducted at a jail in Punjab.
Bishnoi has been charged with the murder of Punjabi singer Shubhdeep Singh Sidhu, also known as Sidhu Moosewala, apart from other cases.
Leader of the Opposition in the State Assembly, Partap Singh Bajwa of the Congress party, on Wednesday said that after the latest report by the Special Investigation Team (SIT), which said Bishnoi’s interview had been conducted in Punjab, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, who also holds the Home and Jail portfolios, should immediately resign.
The SIT submitted a sealed report to the Punjab and Haryana High Court. The report said that Bishnoi’s first interview was conducted while he was in the Central Investigation Agency’s (CIA) custody in Kharar, Punjab, and the second interview took place at a jail in Rajasthan.
“The Aam Aadmi Party-led Punjab government has been lying since March 2023. Now, after this revelation in the High Court, Bhagwant Mann owes an explanation to the people of Punjab, particularly the parents of slain Punjabi singer Shubhdeep Singh Sidhu,” Mr. Bajwa said.
In 2023, following the direction of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, a SIT was formed to probe Bishnoi’s interview while in custody.
Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) leader Bikram Singh Majithia also called for Mr. Mann’s resignation as Chief Minister, and owning moral responsibility for the development. “The AAP government had vehemently denied that Bishnoi’s television interview was held at a jail in Punjab, but a report submitted by a SIT formed by the High Court to probe the matter has revealed that the interview took place at the Kharar police station...This could only happen under the patronage of the government, and the Chief Minister should explain why his government was providing protection to Bishnoi,” Mr. Majithia said.
