BJP’s 7-day ultimatum to Punjab AAP MLA Bharaj over poll ticket offer claim

The Punjab BJP on Friday issued a one-week ultimatum to Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MLA from Sangrur, Narinder Kaur Bharaj, demanding she reveal the identity of the individual she claims approached her with an offer to join the saffron party.

The development follows Bharaj’s allegations that Haryana chief minister Nayab Singh Saini had offered her a BJP ticket for the 2027 assembly elections and invited her for a closed-door meeting.

Addressing a press conference in Sangrur, local BJP leaders, including Randeep Singh Deol and Amandeep Punia, challenged the validity of Bharaj’s statements. They questioned why the MLA, who was bold enough to name the Haryana CM, remains silent regarding the local leadership’s alleged involvement.

The leaders warned that if she fails to disclose the names within a week, she will face protests outside her residence and potential legal action. Deol asserted that the party has no interest in “incapable candidates” and linked her claims to a “falling political graph” and past corruption allegations.

In February last year, a Phagguwal resident had accused the MLA of taking a ₹30 lakh bribe regarding the Bhawanigarh Truck Union presidency, an allegation Bharaj had countered with a police complaint.

Saini dismisses charges as baseless

In Faridabad, Haryana CM Saini dismissed the charges as “baseless and distraction tactics”. Speaking in Faridabad, Saini said he neither knows the MLA nor the constituency she represents.

“The AAP is a ‘shop of lies’ even bigger than the Congress. It is trying to hide its wrongdoings by diverting public attention,” Saini said, comparing the claims to previous ‘Operation Lotus’ allegations made by the party in Delhi and Punjab in 2022. He urged the AAP government to focus on fulfilling promises related to law and order, employment, and farmer compensation rather than “peddling false narratives”.

Responding to the BJP’s ultimatum, Bharaj, however, remained defiant, stating her informant was a “reputed person” close to Saini. She dismissed the BJP’s ultimatum, stating she does not fear legal action or demonstrations. “They may have the idea that there are tensions between me and the party (AAP),” she said, adding that many were trying to “pull her down”. (With PTI inputs)