AAP workers detained for allegedly calling ML Khattar ‘CM of Punjabis’, row erupts

New Delhi :

Around 70 Haryana Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) workers were detained in a late Friday night police raid across the state allegedly for calling Manohar Lal Khattar a “CM of Punjabis”, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal claimed. AAP workers in several places sat on a Dharna in front of police stations to protest the “dictatorial move”. AAP IT cell head and spokesperson Kuldeep Kadyan claimed that the Crime Investigation Agency of Haryana police raided homes of around 70 AAP workers allegedly for their Facebook posts claiming that the Manohar Lal Khattar government in Haryana was working only for Punjabis.

“It’s a bizarre irony that BJP itself can advertise about their Punjabi leader but if someone else shares those snapshots, they got arrested in a manner as if they were terrorists. Is this democracy?” Kadyan tweeted along with the purported snapshots of BJP advertisement calling Khattar CM of Punjabis.

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ये तो अजीब विडंबना बीजेपी खुद पंजाबी नेता के विज्ञापन दे सकती है लेकिन अगर कोई ओर फ़ोटो शेयर करता है तो उसको रात में ही पुलिस द्वारा उठवा लिया जाता है जैसे वो आतंकवादी हों, क्या ये लोकतंत्र है??@ArvindKejriwal @NaveenJaihind pic.twitter.com/BxGPmGYeJm

— Kuldeep Kadyan (@KuldeepKadyan) December 29, 2018

AAP chief and Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal also slammed the BJP-led Haryana government over the arrests of his party workers allegedly for calling Khattar a CM of Punjabis. “What kind of dictatorship is this? Late last night 70 people were arrested for calling Khattar Sahib chief minister of Punjabis?” Kejriwal wrote on Twitter.

Another AAP leader Ankit Lal claimed that people who were arrested for posting on Facebook were charged under the sections 153 (giving provocation with intent to cause riot), 153-A (promoting enmity between different groups on ground of religion) of the Indian Penal Code and Section 66 of the Information Technology Act.

“70 people arrested in Haryana for posting on FB. 153 (giving provocation with intent to cause riot), 153-A (promoting enmity between different groups on ground of religion) of IPC and Section 66 of Information Technology Act,” Lal said.

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Early on Friday, the police had also arrested an Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) student leader for allegedly posting an article that quoted Haryana CM as saying - "I am just the CM of Punjabis, have nothing to do with other castes". The Haryana chief minister, who was born in Punjab's Nindana (Now part of Haryana), is often accused of playing Punjabi card to woo voters by the Oppositions parties.

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