As Akali leader Majithia gets bail, why his jail meeting with Radha Soami chief has sparked a row
AAP, BJP and Akali Dal trade barbs over alleged vendetta, judicial integrity, and the controversial jail visit by Radha Soami Satsang Beas chief Baba Gurinder Singh Dhillon
Bikram Singh Majithia. (File Photo) The Supreme Court’s decision to grant bail to senior Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) leader Bikram Singh Majithia in a disproportionate assets case on Monday has triggered a sharp political confrontation in Punjab, drawing in the ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), the BJP and the SAD into an escalating war of words.
In what seemingly further fuelled the row was the visit of Radha Soami Satsang Beas chief Baba Gurinder Singh Dhillon to Nabha jail hours before the top court’s bail order, a coincidence that has pushed the issue beyond partisan politics into faith and religious influence.
Majithia, a former Punjab minister and brother-in-law of SAD chief Sukhbir Singh Badal, was arrested by the Punjab Vigilance Bureau on June 25 last year. The agency has alleged that assets worth over Rs 540 crore were accumulated through laundering of drug money — charges that Majithia has consistently denied.
A chargesheet running into nearly 40,000 pages was subsequently filed in a Mohali court. While granting him bail, the Supreme Court stressed that bail does not amount to an acquittal and that the trial would continue.
However, political temperatures rose sharply after Dhillon visited Majithia in Nabha jail and publicly described the charges against him as “false and baseless”.
Acknowledging his family connection — Dhillon is a close relative of Majithia’s wife and SAD MLA Ganieve Majithia — the spiritual leader said, “He is my friend and I will meet him.” He added that Majithia was in high spirits but declined to share details of their interaction. While maintaining that it did not behove him to comment on political matters, Dhillon reiterated that the allegations against Majithia were unfounded. Roughly an hour after the visit, the Supreme Court pronounced its bail order, a sequence of events that quickly became fodder for political commentary and social media sparring.
Political slugfest
Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Tuesday morning posted a cryptic message on X in Punjabi: “Whether they become a judge today or tomorrow, God alone can protect justice in the courts when a visitor himself turns into the judge.” The post was widely interpreted as a reference to the jail visit by the Dera Beas chief and immediately drew sharp reactions from the Opposition.
Punjab BJP spokesperson Pritpal Singh Baliawal accused the CM of crossing a line by dragging faith into political commentary, warning that followers of Radha Soami Satsang Beas would respond.
The BJP also pointed to what it described as contradictions within the AAP government, noting that Punjab Cabinet minister Hardeep Singh Mundian is an ardent follower of Dera Beas and an office-bearer of its Ludhiana unit.
Union Minister of State for Railways Ravneet Singh Bittu said Mann had questioned the credibility of his own office by raising fingers at the head of a spiritual organisation revered across political lines. “The spiritual guru will not react, but the followers are definitely reacting and feeling hurt,” Bittu said.
Punjab BJP president Sunil Jakhar used the bail order to mount a broader attack on the AAP government, drawing parallels with AAP leaders Arvind Kejriwal and Manish Sisodia securing bail in Delhi cases. When Kejriwal was released, Jakhar said, AAP had proclaimed “Satyameva Jayate”, adding that Majithia’s bail reflected the “complete failure” of the Punjab government and police.
The AAP countered stressing that bail did not amount to innocence. The party’s Punjab general secretary Baltej Pannu said that while it respected the head of Dera Beas and its global following, a spiritual leader of such stature should have refrained from visiting an undertrial in jail. “Saints and spiritual leaders are expected to remain detached from personal ties. It is for the courts to decide guilt or innocence,” he said.
State Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema also acknowledged the Dhillon’s stature and said the visit may have been prompted by family ties. Cheema said Majithia was “a person involved in selling drugs in Punjab”, reiterating that the legal process was far from over.
On the other hand, the SAD welcomed the bail order as proof that “truth has prevailed” and alleged that political vendetta by the AAP government stood exposed.
Senior SAD leaders Daljit Singh Cheema and Arshdeep Singh Kler accused the AAP government of fabricating false cases against Majithia and failing to defend them in court. Reacting to Mann’s post, Kler said the CM was questioning the credibility of the Supreme Court, pointing out that the same court had granted bail to AAP leaders earlier.
SAD leaders also accused the CM of targeting spiritual figures, warning that such remarks could have wider consequences in a state where religious institutions wield significant social influence.
The Congress has yet to officially react to the issue but in the past has slammed Majithia’s arrest and the circumstances surrounding it, calling his arrest “undemocratic and politically motivated”.
The Radha Soami Satsang Beas, with an estimated 15-20 million followers worldwide and several million in Punjab, officially stays away from electoral politics but commands considerable moral authority.
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