Since the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) swept to power in Punjab in 2022, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann has rarely appeared politically isolated. He heads a government with 95 MLAs and enjoys an absolute majority in the Assembly. Yet, in the political crisis triggered by the Akal Takht’s directive asking Sikhs to socially boycott him and the subsequent summons issued to AAP MLAs and ministers over the anti-sacrilege law, Mann has largely been left to fend for himself.
In the days after the controversy over a purported video allegedly showing Mann snowballed, it was the CM who addressed press conferences, rebutted allegations and sought to counter criticism. The optics were striking. Mann stood almost alone before the cameras, defending both himself and his government’s handling of the controversy.
Conspicuous by their silence were AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal and senior leader Manish Sisodia.
Neither made any public intervention as the controversy escalated from questions over an alleged video to competing forensic claims, an FIR registered by the Gurugram Police over allegedly fabricated forensic reports, two subsequent arrests, criticism from the Opposition, and finally the Akal Takht’s unprecedented directive calling for Mann’s social boycott.
For a party that has traditionally rallied around its senior leadership during political crises, the silence has been noticed both within AAP and outside it.
Initially, Mann was not entirely alone. Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema publicly defended the CM and attacked the Opposition over the controversy. But the government’s strategy suffered a setback after the Gurugram Police registered an FIR. Within the party, several leaders privately admit that relying on private forensic reports proved counterproductive.
“The forensic report became the bigger story,” admitted an AAP functionary. “Instead of settling the controversy, it prolonged it and handed the Opposition a fresh political issue.”
That caution gradually translated into political distance. While Mann continued to publicly take on his critics, there was no visible mobilisation by the party’s national leadership. Nor was there a coordinated campaign by ministers to defend the government’s position, something that has typically characterised AAP during political crises.
“The day the Akal Takht issued the directive, Mann released a video message accusing the Akal Takht Jathedar of acting at the behest of his political masters. Kejriwal reposted the video on X, as did most AAP MLAs and ministers. When the forensic report was presented, Cheema addressed the media. But after the forensic report controversy backfired, Mann was largely left to handle the matter himself. He addressed another press conference, claiming the person in the video was someone else wearing a mask resembling him. Kejriwal again reposted Mann’s media conference, saying the truth had come out,” an AAP leader said.
Opposition slams Mann
Punjab Congress president Amrinder Singh Raja Warring accused Mann of bringing disrepute to the office of the CM and demanded his resignation following the Akal Takht’s directive. “The Chief Minister should resign immediately. All this does not behove the office of the CM,” Warring said.
Senior Congress leader Charanjit Singh Channi questioned why the government had relied on private forensic reports if it was confident of its position.
The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) accused the government of attempting to mislead the public through fabricated evidence and said the developments vindicated concerns raised by Sikh religious bodies.
Concerns within AAP
Within the AAP, however, the immediate concern is less rhetorical than political. Several Sikh MLAs privately acknowledge that the Akal Takht’s directive has placed them in an uncomfortable position in their constituencies. “The summons issued to all AAP MLAs and ministers over the anti-sacrilege law is a big deal. Mann himself has not been summoned. He is the only member of the 117-member Assembly who has not been asked to appear before the Akal Takht on June 29,” said an AAP MLA.
That dilemma explains why Mann has called all MLAs and ministers to Amritsar on Sunday, a day before the scheduled appearance. Party sources said the meeting is expected to finalise the leadership’s response and decide whether legislators should appear collectively before the Akal Takht.
Mann himself is not expected to be part of Monday’s proceedings as the Akal Takht has directed Sikhs to socially boycott him. The MLAs and ministers, however, have been asked to appear.
The distinction carries significant political implications.
If legislators appear, it could be seen as an attempt to defuse tensions between the ruling party and the Sikh temporal authority. If they stay away, they risk being viewed as endorsing a confrontation that some within the party believe could prove politically costly.
Either way, Mann remains at the centre of the crisis. Ironically, it was Mann who has projected himself as AAP’s undisputed political face in Punjab. From leading election campaigns to announcing flagship schemes, he has become synonymous with the party’s government. Only days ago, Kejriwal declared him AAP’s chief ministerial face for the 2027 Assembly elections.
Kejriwal, who is in Punjab for the party’s three-day Shiv Sandhya outreach programme, is also expected to attend Sunday’s meeting of legislators in Amritsar. Whether his presence translates into a clear public display of political solidarity with Mann remains to be seen.
For the AAP, the challenge has now moved beyond managing a controversy over an alleged video or responding to an FIR over forensic reports. It is about reassuring its own legislators that the party has a coherent political strategy to navigate an unprecedented confrontation involving Punjab’s highest Sikh temporal authority.