The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has raided the residence of Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi’s nephew, Bhupinder Singh Honey, in connection with an illegal sand mining case, multiple reports emerged. The incident comes a few weeks ahead of Punjab assembly polls. More details are awaited.
Earlier, facing flak from the BJP over the "security lapse" during the prime minister's Punjab visit, Channi had alleged that Narendra Modi's "gimmick" of "threat to his life" was aimed at "toppling a democratically elected government" in the state. Channi alleged that the "failure" of BJP's rally on Wednesday was a reflection of the fact that wise Punjabis have outrightly rejected the "divisive" agenda of the party.
Channi alleged that the "false pretext" under which the PM cancelled his visit was part of a "larger conspiracy to defame Punjab and murder democracy in the state on lines of what was done earlier in Jammu and Kashmir".
The chief minister asked how could the prime minister's life be threatened if the protestors were more than a kilometre away from him. He said that not even a slogan was raised at the place where Modi's cavalcade stopped, then how could his life have been under threat.
Channi reminded Modi that Punjabis have sacrificed their lives for unity, integrity and sovereignty of the country and added that they could never pose any danger to the life and security of the prime minister.
-Inputs from agencies