Chandigarh: The AAP on Sunday claimed that Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann was detained for three hours at the Delhi airport upon his return from Paris and fined Rs 50,000, with officials citing “tremendous pressure from above”.
The party did not say why Mann was detained or fined.
Punjab AAP media in-charge Baltej Pannu linked the incident to the Centre’s “repeated” denial of permission for Mann’s foreign visits, among other things.
In a statement, Pannu accused the Centre of creating “obstacles” in the path of Punjab’s progress.
He said Mann travelled to Paris following a Punjab and Haryana High Court order and the central government once again demonstrated its “narrow-mindedness”.
“He (Mann) had gone there to launch Punjab’s famous products at the world’s second-largest food festival. The high court had clearly directed that Mann be accorded his due protocol, but such was the ill intent of the Centre that even the Consul General in Paris did not come to meet the chief minister,” Pannu claimed.
The Centre’s “resentment and humiliation” of the Punjab CM did not stop there, he said.
“When Mann returned from Paris and arrived at the Delhi airport, he was deliberately detained for three hours. Excuses were made that ‘your luggage is still arriving’ and ‘your luggage is still being checked’. These were outright lies and an insult to Punjab,” Pannu said.
“After three hours, when Mann was allowed to leave and was about to depart after placing his luggage in a vehicle, officials came running after him and said that they were under ‘tremendous pressure from above’,” he claimed.
“Then they issued a challan of Rs 50,000. The officials themselves admitted that they were under pressure, which proves that the entire episode was carried out under orders from above.
“Has any chief minister of an Indian state ever been detained at an airport for three hours in this manner? Has any chief minister of a state ever been disrespected by being issued a challan of Rs 50,000? This is happening solely because Mann is a Punjabi, is the Chief Minister of Punjab, and is working day and night for the betterment of Punjab,” the AAP leader charged.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his government leave no opportunity to undermine Punjab and Punjabi identity, Pannu alleged.
“Whether it is forcibly keeping farmers at Delhi’s borders for one and a half years or withholding funds rightfully due to Punjab, the central government has constantly tried to choke Punjab at every level,” he claimed.
“So far, permission for Mann’s foreign visits has been denied at least four times because the Modi government fears that if the CM travels abroad, he will bring investment and funds from there and put Punjab on the path of progress,” he claimed.
Mann went to Paris after the Punjab and Haryana High Court allowed a state government plea challenging the Centre’s “arbitrary” decision denying him political clearance for the visit.
Mann participated in SIAL Paris 2026, an international food trade exhibition being held from October 17 to 21.
This report is auto-generated from PTI news service. ThePrint holds no responsibility for its content.