'Bhagwant Mann should quit, face first FIR under new sacrilege law': Raghav Chadha over video row

Escalating the political confrontation over the alleged sacrilege video controversy involving Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, Raghav Chadha on Thursday alleged that the Punjab Government had procured a "fabricated" forensic report to conceal what he described as the "original" video. He demanded Mann's immediate resignation and called for the first FIR under Punjab's newly enacted sacrilege law to be registered against the Chief Minister.

Addressing press, Chadha claimed the alleged forensic report had been created to cast doubt on the authenticity of the video but instead reinforced public belief that it was genuine.

"The truth behind the original sacrilege video has now been exposed. Those who had doubts about whether the video was genuine or AI-generated have now seen that a fabricated forensic report had to be prepared to hide the original video. Had the video been fake, there would have been no need for such a report," Chadha alleged.

He further alleged that attempts had been made to question the authority of Sri Akal Takht Sahib and claimed that members of the Sikh community were "hurt, angry and seeking answers”. He urged AAP's Sikh MLAs to clarify whether they stood with the Sikh Panth and Akal Takht Sahib or with Bhagwant Mann.

Calling for a detailed investigation, Chadha demanded that the authorities should examine how the alleged forensic report was procured, which officials were involved, whether public funds were used, and whether offences such as misuse of government money or money laundering were involved.

He said two demands were now being raised by the Sikh community, the immediate resignation of Bhagwant Mann as Punjab Chief Minister and the registration of the first FIR under Punjab's new sacrilege law against Mann himself.

"Bhagwant Mann is no longer fit to remain Chief Minister even for a minute," Chadha alleged.

Referring to his own political journey, Chadha said he considered himself fortunate to have distanced himself from the Aam Aadmi Party in time. He also appealed to party workers and supporters to decide whether they stood with Bhagwant Mann or with the Sikh Panth.

The Punjab Government and the Aam Aadmi Party had not responded to Chadha's allegations at the time of filing of the news.