Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann slams BJP's ‘Sindoor politics', says military must remain apolitical

Hindustan Times

2 days ago

Punjab chief minister Bhagwant Mann on Thursday launched a scathing attack on the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), accusing it of politicising sacred symbols and the armed forces.
Mann was speaking to the media after welcoming around two dozen Congress families and an Independent candidate Chandan Chhanaliya into the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP).
He condemned BJP's act of distributing sindoor (vermilion), stating that such symbolic gestures have no place in a democracy.
'Governance isn't about distributing sindoor or exploiting religious imagery. It's about service, development, and integrity,' he said.
The Punjab CM also accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of politicising the armed forces. 'This is a dangerous precedent. The military must remain apolitical and above party politics,' he said.
Taking a jibe at the Congress, Mann said the party is crumbling under its own internal conflicts. 'They are so busy fighting among themselves that they've lost connection with the people,' he said.
As for the BJP, he claimed that the party has already accepted defeat in Punjab. 'Their leaders are telling voters to not vote for AAP, even if they are not voting for the BJP,' the CM said.
Mann also hit out at the Shiromani Akali Dal, holding them responsible for the rise of gang culture and drug trafficking in Punjab. 'The gangsters who terrorise Punjab today were born during the Akali rule. They didn't build schools or hospitals, but they handed over our roads to private players and nurtured mafias,' he said.