Chandigarh: Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann was allegedly made to wait for nearly three hours at Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport after returning from Paris and was subsequently fined Rs 50,000, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) claimed Wednesday, triggering a political controversy between the party and the BJP-led Central government.
Punjab AAP Media In-charge Baltej Pannu said that CM Mann was kept waiting on the pretext that his luggage had not arrived or was still being checked.
He alleged that officials approached the Chief Minister as he was preparing to leave the airport and told him they were under “tremendous pressure from above”.
The AAP described the incident as an attempt to humiliate the Chief Minister and undermine the dignity of the state.
However, AAP did not initially clarify the official grounds for the Rs 50,000 challan.
Media reports citing sources said the Rs 50,000 penalty was imposed by the Customs Department over allegedly undeclared luxury goods.
Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) leader Bikram Singh Majithia claimed that Mann and his wife, Gurpreet Kaur, were questioned by Customs officials over alleged violations involving luggage or other items.
These claims have not, by themselves, established the circumstances or legal basis of the action.
Mann had travelled to Paris to promote Punjab’s agricultural and food-processing products at SIAL Paris 2026, an international food trade exhibition being held from October 17 to 21.
The state delegation was associated with the Punjab State Cooperative Supply and Marketing Federation, popularly known as Markfed.
During the visit, Mann promoted products under the state’s Sohna brand, including canned chickpeas and red kidney beans, as part of efforts to expand the international market for Punjab’s produce.
AAP leaders linked the airport episode to the earlier tug-of-war over political clearance for Mann’s foreign visit.
The Punjab and Haryana High Court had set aside the denial of clearance and allowed the foreign trip.
Pannu accused the Centre of repeatedly creating obstacles for Mann’s overseas engagements and portrayed the reported airport delay and penalty as part of a wider pattern of political hostility towards Punjab.
