Punjab CM, AAP leaders condemn ED raid on Saurabh Bhardwaj

Chandigarh: Punjab chief minister Bhagwant Mann on Tuesday condemned the Enforcement Directorate (ED) raids against AAP leader Saurabh Bhardwaj, alleging they were carried out to divert attention from discussions regarding Prime Minister Narendra Modi's degree. In a post on X, Mann said, "Today, Saurabh Bhardwaj was raided because a discussion has been going on throughout the country since yesterday about whether Modi ji's degree is fake. This raid was conducted to divert attention from that. Satyendar Jain was also kept in jail for three years, and later the CBI and ED filed a closure report in court. This makes it clear that all the cases filed against Aam Aadmi Party leaders are fake and false."AAP state president Aman Arora echoed this sentiment, saying that every time questions are raised about Modi, the ED is sent after AAP leaders. He noted that the case against Bhardwaj dates back to a time when he was not a minister, calling the entire matter "fabricated," similar to Satyendar Jain's case.Anandpur Sahib MP Malvinder Singh Kang also called the raid "sheer dirty politics and diversionary tactics," arguing it was no coincidence that the ED arrived a day after questions were raised about the Prime Minister's degree. He added that the case pertains to a time when Bhardwaj was not a minister.Cabinet minister Harjot Singh Bains posted on X that the raid exposes the political misuse of agencies, asking "Why today?" because "the whole nation is questioning Modi degree since yesterday." He also highlighted that the case is from a time when Bhardwaj was not a minister and compared it to Satyendar Jain's case, which "collapsed after 3 years in jail."Another minister, Harpal Singh Cheema, added, "Modi's answer to every uncomfortable question is not governance but ED raids." He described what he called the BJP's "dirty script" as one that uses fake cases and imprisonment without proof, followed by a quiet closure later. Cheema concluded that this is not justice, but "dictatorship," and that "people are watching."