‘Tortured if you question AAP’: Rahul Gandhi’s pre-Punjab poll attack

“For just this, he was tortured and humiliated so much, pressured so intensely to apologize, that he consumed poison. Wandering from one hospital to another, without access to treatment, he ultimately lost the battle for his life,” he added.

He also shared a video of Singh blaming Cheema for his harassment.

पंजाब की AAP सरकार में एक खतरनाक पैटर्न दिख रहा है – सरकारी नाकामी पर सवाल करोगे, तो जवाब धमकी और torture से मिलेगा।

अपने बेटे को नशे का शिकार बनते देखने वाले, दलित समुदाय से आने वाले गुलज़ार सिंह जी ने वित्त मंत्री से सिर्फ़ इतना पूछा कि सरकार ड्रग्स का कारोबार रोकने में इतनी… https://t.co/umImJz7GFm

— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) September 9, 2026

The Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition also referred to the alleged torture of Mohanjeet Singh of Sheron after he protested against Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann. “The government’s job is to answer to the people, not to crush those who ask questions,” he said, urging swift justice for Gulzar Singh’s family.

Gurdaspur MP Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa said a settlement with the government could not bury a criminal case. Abetment to suicide, he argued, was a matter between the State and the accused.

If the deceased had made a dying declaration naming the accused, that evidence did not vanish because the family later reached a settlement. “Justice cannot be negotiated away,” he said.

‘A secret understanding’

Thousands of Congress workers across Punjab staged a protest in Chandigarh Tuesday, seeking Cheema’s dismissal and arrest.

Led by Punjab Congress president Amarinder Singh Raja Warring, they gathered outside the party office and marched toward the chief minister’s residence for a gherao, but a large police contingent stopped them.

Warring said Gulzar had named Cheema in his dying declaration. He also condemned the alleged police brutality against Mohanjit for showing a black flag to Mann, and questioned the chief minister’s silence over protection allegedly granted to a rape accused.

Warring also alleged a “secret understanding” between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah on one side and Arvind Kejriwal and Bhagwant Mann on the other. He claimed the Bharatiya Janata Party wanted the Aam Aadmi Party to split anti-BJP votes in Gujarat, while the AAP expected help in Punjab, which goes to polls early next year.

That, he said, explained why the Enforcement Directorate was “playing a fixed match” with Punjab Police over arrests of AAP-linked accused, unlike its earlier action against Congress leaders such as Sadhu Singh.

He also criticised the AAP for inducting convicted gangster Gurpreet Singh Sekhon, whose sentence has been suspended by the High Court, and accused the government of denying employees their due dearness allowance while treating them as adversaries.

Reaffirming his loyalty to the Congress, Warring asked workers to ensure victory for every party candidate so that Punjab could replace what he called a “corrupt and incompetent government.” He announced that he would next wave black flags on Mann’s own stage, after police stopped the party from reaching a venue on Sunday.

AAP hits back

Responding to Gandhi’s remarks, AAP media in-charge Anurag Dhandha said the accused in the drug case had already been arrested. Dhandha also blamed previous Shiromani Akali Dal-BJP and Congress governments for the spread of drugs in Punjab.

“Rahulji, Congress leaders were attempting to engage in the same dirty politics during their visit to the victim’s village, but the people chased them away from there. All the accused have already been caught by the police based on identification by the family,” Dhandha wrote on X.

“The Akali-BJP and Congress governments have been responsible for spreading drugs in Punjab. In the AAP government, no drug smuggler is spared,” he added.

The AAP, too, shared a video, which it claimed to show the deceased’s family.

“The deceased’s son is clearly stating in no uncertain terms that no pressure was exerted on his family by the minister. Stop spreading rumours. The culprits have been caught, and the Bhagwant Mann government will ensure they reach the gallows,” the party said.

राहुल गांधी जी, झूठ बोलने से पहले मृतक के बेटे का ये वीडियो तो देख लेते।

मृतक का बेटा साफ़ शब्दों में बोल रहा है कि उसके परिवार पर मंत्री द्वारा कोई दबाव नहीं डाला गया। अफ़वाह उड़ाना बंद करें।

दोषी पकड़े गए हैं और भगवंत मान सरकार उन्हें फाँसी के फंदे तक पहुँचाएगी। pic.twitter.com/WCSRFYMk8p

— AAP (@AamAadmiParty) September 9, 2026