‘Complete failure of Punjab government’: BJP leaders condemn blast outside Manoranjan Kalia’s house

Ravneet Singh Bittu, Minister of State for Railways, said the blast outside former Punjab minister Manoranjan Kalia’s house in Jalandhar was ‘a direct assault on peace, democracy, and law and order’.

Kalia, a national executive member of the BJP, was home at the time of the blast but was not harmed. (Source: X/ @officeofssbadal)

Written by: Raakhi Jagga

3 min readLudhianaApr 8, 2025 12:57 PM IST First published on: Apr 8, 2025 at 12:57 PM IST

Hours after an explosion outside senior BJP leader and former Punjab minister Manoranjan Kalia’s house in Jalandhar early on Tuesday, the BJP condemned the incident, saying it “exposes the complete failure of the Punjab government” in maintaining law and order in the state.

“When the Punjab government is busy taking care of the leaders who lost in the Delhi polls, how can they focus on Punjab’s law and order? Our brave Punjab Police force is busy providing security to the ‘failed politicians’ of Delhi. It is high time to let the police do its work and set in order the law and order in the state,” Tarun Chugh, BJP’s national general secretary, said.

Pritpal Singh Baliawal, the spokesperson of the BJP in Punjab, urged Union Home Minister Amit Shah to get the incident investigated by central agencies. “Daily grenade attacks – our lives and safety are in God’s hands! Thank God, Kalia Ji is safe! On whose orders is the security of our leaders and families being compromised? We urge Amit Shah Ji to have all these attacks and security lapses investigated by central agencies,” Baliawal said.

Kalia, a national executive member of the BJP, was home at the time of the blast but was not harmed. The police are reviewing CCTV footage and investigating if the blast was caused by a grenade or another device.

Ravneet Singh Bittu, Minister of State for Railways, termed the incident “a direct assault on the peace, democracy, and law and order of Punjab”. “This heinous act exposes the complete failure of the Punjab government and its inability to maintain security. Such cowardly acts of terror cannot and will not be tolerated. I strongly condemn this attack. If Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann cannot fulfil his duty, he must resign immediately,” Bittu said.

Senior BJP leader Sukhminderpal Singh Grewal also termed the incident an assault on India’s democracy. “This was a planned act of terror, intended to spread fear and silence the voice of nationalism. We will not be silenced. CCTV footage shows two assailants on an e-rickshaw carrying out this brazen attack. The blast caused major property damage. Thankfully, there was no loss of life—but make no mistake, this was a terror attempt. This is not an isolated incident. From threats to BJP leaders to the recent Waqf Bill controversy, a larger anti-national conspiracy is unfolding in Punjab. We demand arrests. We demand answers. We demand justice. This happened just metres away from a police station,” Grewal said.

State BJP president Sunil Jakhar condemned the attack and sought a thorough investigation.

Kalia has held several key positions in Punjab politics. He has served as the leader of the legislative party in the Punjab Assembly and as a minister in the Punjab government on two occasions. Additionally, he served as the state president of the BJP in Punjab and the state President of the BJP Yuva Morcha in the state. Kalia’s father, Manmohan Kalia, was a four-time MLA who also served as a minister in the Punjab government.