Following the arrest of two Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MLAs in Punjab this week, the Opposition in the state has accused the government of using its machinery to quell internal dissent. The ruling party, however, has said it is committed to a “zero-tolerance” policy on wrongdoing.
The latest arrest is of the party’s Sanour MLA, Harmit Singh Pathanmajra, who is on the run after being arrested by the Patiala police in Karnal, Haryana, in a three-year-old case on charges of rape, cheating, and criminal intimidation early on Tuesday. The state’s Anti-Gangster Task Force is leading the chase for the legislator.
Pathanmajra’s arrest came a day after he targeted the Mann government over its handling of flood relief in Punjab, accusing it of red-tapism, inefficiency, and neglect. On Monday, the government withdrew his security cover after he urged his fellow MLAs and CM Mann to oppose “interference” by the party’s Delhi leadership.
On Wednesday, Pathanmajra released a video accusing the police of planning “to eliminate him in a fake encounter”. The MLA is married to the paternal aunt of Mann’s wife Gurpreet Kaur.
AAP spokesperson Baltej Singh Pannu defended the government, saying, “The MLA turned critical only after he was rebuffed by senior leadership of the AAP. He had learnt about the rape complaint against him and reached Delhi leadership for help. When he did not see any ray of hope, as (AAP convener Arvind) Kejriwal does not compromise on three Cs (corruption, crime and character), he opened a front against the party.”
On Thursday, the AAP’s Jalandhar (Central) MLA Raman Arora was also booked and arrested in Jalandhar in a new case of extortion. It came a day after he got bail from the Punjab and Haryana High Court in a corruption case probed by the state Vigilance Bureau.
On May 23, Arora was arrested after being accused of duping individuals in collusion with government officials. At the time, the AAP had posted on X, “Bhagwant Mann government’s big action against corruption. No one is above the law — not even within the AAP. Vigilance raids MLA Raman Arora over fake Nagar Nigam notices, extortion and digital scams. This is what real accountability looks like.”
Even Mann, in a video message, reiterated the government’s stance on corruption, saying, “No mercy upon the corrupt. Our policy on corruption is absolutely clear. Whether someone is our own or an outsider, anyone who indulges in any form of corruption will not be tolerated and legal action will definitely be taken.” At the time, party insiders believed that Arora was warming up to the BJP and preparing to jump ship.
Other AAP leaders arrested or suspended
In late June, Amritsar (North) MLA Kunwar Vijay Pratap Singh, a former IPS officer, was suspended from the party for five years after he questioned the government’s handling of a case against Akali Dal leader Bikram Singh Majithia, who had been arrested in an alleged disproportionate assets case. He also accused the party of failing to act in the decade-old Bargari sacrilege case.
In February 2023, Bathinda Rural MLA Amit Rattan Kotfatta was arrested on bribery charges. The Vigilance Bureau had registered a case against one of Kotfatta’s aides under the Prevention of Corruption Act for allegedly accepting a bribe of Rs 4 lakh. Later, the MLA was arrested after his aide allegedly told the Vigilance Bureau that the bribe was meant for him. That May, Kotfatta was granted bail by the High Court.
In May 2022, Mansa MLA and Cabinet Minister Vijay Singla was arrested on charges of corruption and was sacked from the government. He was accused of seeking a “1% cut in tenders allotment and purchase of goods” related to his department. However, this June, the Vigilance Bureau filed a closure report, granting the former minister a clean chit.
At the time, Mann said in a video statement that he had directed the police to register a case against Singla after he “confessed” to his crime. The initial complaint was made by a superintendent engineer in the Punjab Health Systems Corporation who had conducted a sting operation on Singla. Singla had not publicly criticised the party.
Following the recent cases involving Pathanmajra and Arora, the Congress targeted the AAP. Leader of Opposition Partap Bajwa said, “The shocking FIR registered against AAP MLA Pathanmajra, exposes not just the moral and legal rot within the ruling party, but also the complete collapse of justice under Bhagwant Mann’s leadership. The FIR itself makes it clear that the alleged crime dates back to 2014. The complainant approached the authorities in September 2022. Yet, for nearly three years, the Mann government remained deaf and blind to her cries for justice. Why was no action taken then? Why was this MLA not arrested or even questioned for so long?”
Bajwa said the case reveals two “disturbing truths” about the Mann government – first, that it is not committed to justice for ordinary citizens; and second, that it proves that Mann “uses state machinery to tame dissenting voices” inside and outside his party. “It is a crackdown on dissent under the garb of upholding integrity. The action is selective,” he said.
AAP spokesperson Neel Garg said the party was committed to clean politics and governance. “Action is taken whenever there are complaints. The Opposition has nothing else to do. They just pounce on the government. They do not go to flood-affected victims. They should rather utilise their energy in helping people.”