BJP Marks Tajinder Bagga ‘Ghar Wapsi’ As Delhi, Haryana Cops Thwart Punjab Move
Three states got involved, the AAP and the BJP sparred as 36-year-old Tajinder Bagga, known for his off-the-cuff political comments, was arrested and freed hours later on Friday.
Bagga is the BJP’s youth wing leader and also the party’s Delhi spokesperson. He has been accused of threatening Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal and was arrested by the Punjab Police on Friday morning. As the political row escalated, the Delhi Police, which comes under the central government, and the Haryana Police in the BJP-ruled state intervened when he was being taken to Mohali by a team of Punjab cops. Bagga has also slammed Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann in his recent comments.
Here are ten points on Tajinder Bagga’s arrest and his eventual release:
1. As Bagga reached home late at night, Delhi BJP chief Adesh Kumar Gupta hailed his ‘Ghar Wapsi’ in a tweet. He even thanked home minister Amit Shah. “Democracy and truth won, @TajinderBagga returned home. A slap on the dictatorship and arrogance of @ArvindKejriwal. Many thanks to Home Minister Shri @AmitShah ji (sic),” the Delhi BJP chief tweeted along with a video. In the video he shared, Bagga was seen standing by his side. ‘Ghar Wapsi’ or homecoming has been a term often used by BJP leaders to highlight their efforts to stop religious conversion.
2. Reacting to the Punjab Police action against him, Bagga was quoted as saying by news agency ANI: “This was an illegal detention. No local police officer was informed about this. Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal can register 100 more FIRs against me if he wants to. We will keep fighting until he apologises for what he said about Kashmiri Pandits.”
3. “Those who believe they can do anything with the help of police, I want to tell them a BJP worker will not be scared of anyone. I thank the Haryana and Delhi Police, and all BJP workers for supporting me. Delhi Police has filed (an) FIR and people concerned will be punished,” he added.
4. A case was filed against him after Bagga protested Kejriwal’s comments about the movie ‘The Kashmir Files’ last month. The BJP had accused the Delhi chief minister of trying to undermine the pain and plight of those who suffered after Kashmiri Pandits were forced out of the Valley three decades ago. A huge protest broke outside Kejriwal’s house last month when the AAP alleged a plot to kill him.
5. The Tajinder Pal Bagga arrest turned into a huge political row between the BJP and the AAP. While the BJP called it “politics of vendetta”, the AAP dismissed the claims.
6. The Delhi Police said on Friday it was not informed about the arrest, and filed a kidnapping case against the Punjab police. The case was registered under sections 452 (house trespass after preparation for hurt, assault or wrongful restraint), 392 (robbery), 342 (wrongful confinement), 365 (kidnapping), 295A (deliberate and malicious acts, intended to outrage religious feelings of any class by insulting its religion or religious beliefs) and 34 (common intention) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), according to a Delhi Police statement, according to a PTI report.
7. On Friday afternoon, in a series of unexpected events, a team of Punjab Police was stopped by Haryana cops when they were on their way to Mohali.
8. By evening, Bagga had returned to Delhi. He was produced in a district magistrate court at midnight, news agency ANI reported.
9. Bagga’s family has alleged harassment by the Punjab Police. “Police officials started dragging Tajinder, they didn’t allow him to wear his turban, this is against our religious principles. We’ve asked Punjabi brothers to raise voices against this. Finally, Tajinder is back, this is victory of truth,” PS Bagga was quoted as saying by ANI.
10. The AAP and the Punjab Police have repeatedly claimed that Bagga was arrested because he did not join the probe when asked several times.