Dr Cheema warns immunity for state machinery risks eroding trust
Chandigarh, November 16 2025 (Bharat Khabarnama Bureau) – The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) has demanded that the Election Commission of India (ECI) should order a full independent investigation into all First Information Reports (FIRs) lodged in the Tarn Taran constituency immediately after the declaration of the recent by-election results. SAD spokesperson Dr Daljit Singh Cheema warned that failure to take stringent action against the state government and officials involved would seriously undermine public faith in the ECI and set a dangerous precedent for future electoral contests.
In a statement issued on X, Dr Cheema alleged that the state government’s handling of the election aftermath has shifted from democratic contest to intimidation. “By unleashing such unprecedented and illegal actions,” he said, “the government signals that the ECI’s authority ends with the polls, this vendetta-politics is aimed at punishing those leaders who refused to bow to the pressure of the Bhagwant Mann government.”
Akali leader further pointed to a written complaint by SAD regarding suspicious surveillance and follow-up of the candidate’s daughter, Kanchan Preet Kaur, by police officials driving a vehicle bearing fake number plates. According to the party, instead of action against the officers, those who exposed the incident were “falsely implicated and arrested.” He said this constituted a direct challenge to the ECI’s mandate of free and fair elections.
SAD has called for the appointment of an independent Election Observer to review the entire matter including the registration of FIRs, arrests of opposition workers and alleged misuse of policing powers. “If the ECI does not intervene decisively,” Dr Cheema warned, “trust in the electoral process in Punjab will be seriously eroded.”
The by-election for the Tarn Taran Assembly seat, necessitated by the demise of the incumbent MLA, saw the Aam Aadmi Party retain the seat with candidate Harmeet Singh Sandhu, following a voter turnout of 60.95 per cent. In the run-up to the poll, the ECI had suspended the Tarn Taran senior superintendent of police, Dr Ravjot Kaur Grewal, following a complaint from SAD accusing her of filing false FIRs to derail the party’s campaign. On November 14, Punjab Police submitted a report to the ECI concerning nine FIRs registered against SAD workers during the Model Code of Conduct period. The report said the cases appeared to be registered in accordance with law, but flagged concerns about coordinated policing actions across districts.
