Former Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi led a protest at the Morinda police station on Friday, alleging that police had detained three councillors from his Congress party ahead of the election for president of the Morinda Municipal Council. The protest, which drew a large crowd of supporters and elected councillors, occurred just hours before the scheduled vote at 3 pm.
Allegations of Political Interference
Speaking to reporters outside the police station, Channi claimed that the detentions were a deliberate attempt by the ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) to influence the outcome of the election. He asserted that one of the detained councillors had been locked inside a bathroom at the station. “The police action is aimed at preventing our councillors from participating in the election. The ruling dispensation is misusing the police machinery for political purposes,” Channi said.
The former chief minister accused the government of undermining democratic norms and demanded the immediate release of the councillors. He warned that the Congress would continue its protest if the councillors were not allowed to participate freely in the election process.
Political Arithmetic in Morinda MC
The Morinda Municipal Council comprises 15 wards, with the Congress holding a dominant position after winning 10 wards in the last election. Independents won four wards, while AAP secured only one. The protestors alleged that the government had registered a criminal case against them to put pressure on them ahead of the crucial election, which they said was politically motivated to alter the council’s arithmetic.
Around 12 elected councillors from the Congress gathered at the police station in support of the detained members, raising slogans against the Punjab government and demanding the withdrawal of the case.
Heightened Political Tensions
The protest created a tense atmosphere outside the police station, with a large number of Congress supporters assembling. Police personnel were deployed in and around the premises to maintain law and order. The confrontation further sharpened the political battle between the Congress and the ruling AAP, with the opposition accusing the government of misusing state machinery to influence local body elections.
No official statement was immediately available from the police regarding the allegations or the reasons behind the reported detentions.
