Partap Singh Bajwa's "50 Bombs" Comment Sparks Congress Vs AAP Row

Senior Punjab Congress leader and the Leader of Opposition Partap Singh Bajwa's "50 bombs" comment has now snowballed into a full-scale row between the state's ruling Aam Aadmi Party and the opposition Congress.  A police case has been filed against Mr Bajwa and as Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann kept pressing for answers, the Congress has lashed out. 

In an interview to a private television channel, Mr Bajwa had claimed that he had information that "50 bombs have reached Punjab". "Of this, 18 have exploded, 32 are yet to go off," he had said.

Mr Mann has questioned where Mr Bajwa got the information about 50 bombs.

"You should tell the source of information... Who told you this?" Mr Mann has been asking since. "If the national intelligence had this information, they would have shared it with Punjab. Neither Punjab intelligence has any information, you are saying all this to spread fear in the state. If you want to spread fear in the state, then are you waiting for the bombs to explode? Then it is a crime. The law will take its course,' he said today. 

The Chief Minister has also claimed that it is a known fact that the Bajwa family is well connected with Pakistani operatives for decades, due to which he's getting such irrational and baseless information.

The Congress had insisted that the information is in public domain and Mr Bajwa had not said anything unique. In a statement yesterday, a group of Congress leaders pointed out that already, there have been more than 20 incidents of grenade attacks on police stations, religious places and the residence of a senior BJP leader, they said. Statues of Baba Saheb Ambedkar have also been desecrated.

In a post on X today, senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh said Mr Bajwa's statement was based on widely reported news in the media and came in the wake of nearly 16 grenade blasts in Punjab over the past six months. 

"Instead of taking the warning seriously, the Chief Minister of Punjab accused Mr. Bajwa - who has lost family to terrorism - of links with terrorist groups. A counter-intelligence team was sent to Mr. Bajwa's residence, and cases have now been registered under sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023,' his post read. 

"Clearly, the Punjab Chief Minister --a bundle of insecurity and incompetence-- and the corrupt AAP leadership is rattled and is resorting to intimidation, smear and threats. It will not work. Governance in Punjab has completely collapsed. The Indian National Congress will not be silenced and will continue to raise the concerns of the people forcefully," he added.

In a televised interview yesterday, the Leader of the Opposition in the Punjab Assembly Partap Singh Bajwa revealed that 50 hand grenades had been smuggled into the state. His statement was based on widely reported news in the media and came in the wake of nearly 16 grenade...

— Jairam Ramesh (@Jairam_Ramesh) April 14, 2025

Receiving summons for questioning, Mr Bajwa expressed his inability to appear before the Cyber Crime police station in Mohali today. He has sought time till 2 pm on Tuesday.

Questioned by a police team on Sunday evening, he had said, "I stand by my statement and will not reveal my sources. The police officers came to me, and I fully cooperated".

"As someone who has personally suffered the horrors of terrorism, having lost my father in a terrorist attack in 1987 and myself being targeted in 1990, I take national security with utmost seriousness. I belong to a family that has paid the price for peace, and I will never remain silent when I perceive a threat to Punjab's safety," he said.
Slamming AAP, he said, "The Chief Minister is a complete failure. 

Unfortunately, the Chief Minister is running the government not with the intent to serve the people of Punjab but to carry out personal vendettas. Today's events stand as a clear testimony to the Aam Aadmi Party government's misuse of power."