The Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee (PPCC) wrote to Punjab Police Director General of Police VK Bhawra on Thursday, 21 April, requesting him to cancel the First Information Report (FIR) registered against Alka Lamba and Kumar Vishwas.
The Punjab Police, on Wednesday, 20 April, had booked former Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Kumar Vishwas under various charges for his remarks against Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal in an interview during the Punjab Assembly elections earlier this year.
Meanwhile, they summoned Congress leader Alka Lamba to appear before the special investigation team at Sadar Rupnagar police station on 26 April in connection with her alleged derogatory statement against Kejriwal ahead of the Punjab polls.
"The content of the FIR, based on the complaint of someone whose identity is still not known to anyone, makes it obvious that it has only been registered to settle a personal score with these people as they have been critical of Delhi Chief Minister, Arvind Kejriwal," the PPCC said in a statement.
"This is not just misuse of power and authority, but total abuse of power. Needless to add, this FIR will not stand any legal security with the likelihood of the concerned police officers getting censured for their action aimed at pleasing their political bosses remotely based in Delhi," the statement added.
Opposition parties have attacked the Punjab government, accusing it of misusing the police for political vendetta.
Background
On Wednesday, HS Atwal, Superintendent of Police (SP), Ropar, said that a case had been lodged against Vishwas under the Indian Penal Code (IPC) sections 153, 153-A and 505, among others.
As per the police, the complainant said that when he was touring villages along with supporters of AAP to redress the grievances of locals, a few masked men stopped them and called them "Khalistanis."
The complaint also stated that such incidents had been occurring elsewhere too after Vishwas issued "inflammatory" statements against CM Kejriwal, claiming that he had links with separatist forces.
Earlier, Vishwas had shared photos in a tweet saying, "In the morning, the Punjab Police is at the door. Yes, Bhagwant Mann will betray you and Punjab also one day. Country remember my warning."
Meanwhile, Lamba tweeted in Hindi, saying, "Punjab Police has pasted the notice on the wall of the house and threatened on the behalf of Bhagwant Mann-led AAP government that if I do not appear in the police station on April 26, then the consequences will be bad. This Gandhian soldier of Congress was not afraid of big Sanghis. Now there is no question of fearing the little Sanghi."
(At The Quint, we question everything. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member today.)