Chandigarh: Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann on Wednesday launched a sharp attack on opposition parties, accusing them of using religion as a political tool after failing to win public support in the state.
In a recorded video message, Mann claimed that the Shiromani Akali Dal, Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) had been unable to gain the confidence of the people and were now resorting to what he described as false allegations of hurting religious sentiments.
Defending himself against the controversy surrounding an alleged video, the Chief Minister said he was being deliberately targeted in an attempt to tarnish his image.
“I am continuously engaged in public welfare work and will continue to serve the people. The opposition is only trying to defame me. The person shown in the video is not me. His physical appearance does not match mine. Neither his posture nor his manner of walking resembles me. This is nothing but a conspiracy to malign my reputation,” Mann said.
The Chief Minister further claimed that people across Punjab had recognised the truth behind the video. According to him, he had received hundreds of phone calls and video messages from citizens who believed that the individual seen in the footage was not him.
Mann alleged that when the opposition realised its campaign based on the video had failed to gain traction, it changed its narrative despite forensic examinations conducted by independent laboratories reportedly concluding that the video was fake.
Targeting the BJP, Mann accused the party of misusing its influence to challenge the forensic findings.
“The BJP intimidated the owners of the laboratories that conducted the examination and pressured them into claiming that the reports were manipulated,” he alleged.
Questioning the credibility of reports cited by his political opponents, Mann asked on what basis the BJP considered the findings of its chosen laboratories to be authentic while dismissing other forensic assessments.
“The people know the truth, and the final verdict will be delivered by the public. These parties have been rejected politically and socially, which is why they are resorting to such deceptive tactics to bring us down,” the Chief Minister said.
The controversy surrounding the video continues to trigger political debate in Punjab, with both the ruling Aam Aadmi Party and opposition parties standing by their respective claims.
