Image for representational purpose only. | Photo Credit: File
Opposition parties in Punjab on Sunday (March 22, 2026) pressured the ruling Aam Aadmi Party for the arrest of its senior leader Laljit Singh Bhullar, who had quit the cabinet as a minister after his name surfaced in the suicide case of a State Warehousing Corporation official.
Gagandeep Singh Randhawa, district manager of Punjab Warehousing Corporation in Amritsar, allegedly committed suicide early Saturday after consuming poisonous substance, as seen in a purported video of the incident. In the video, Mr Randhawa had accused Mr Bhullar of harassing the minister’s aide by pressuring him to award the tender.
Demanding the immediate arrest of the minister, the family of the deceased said they will not perform the last rites or allow the post-mortem to be conducted until the accused is arrested. Speaking to media persons in Amritsar, the deceased’s wife Upinder Kaur said, “We want justice.” She said that when her husband was called to the minister’s residence in Patti, he was humiliated, attacked and forced to confess that he had taken a bribe of ₹10 lakh. “This happened on March 13. Unable to bear the pain, my husband took his own life,” she alleged.
“My husband was being pressurized by Bhullar to manipulate a warehouse tender,” she said.
In Chandigarh, opposition parties including the Indian National Congress, Bharatiya Janata Party and Shiromani Akali Dal demonstrated en masse against the AAP government and attempted to ‘gherao’ the residence of Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann.
Police used water cannons to disperse the agitating members and leaders of political parties who were marching to ‘gherao’ the Chief Minister’s residence. Political parties held a joint agitation to press for the arrest of the minister.
Opposition leader and Congress leader Pratap Singh Bajwa said that serious allegations have emerged which show that the deceased was kept in illegal confinement and extortion was done. “The facts clearly establish a cognizable offence, and the law must take its appropriate course without delay or dilution,” he said. He demanded that the provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act also be invoked against Mr Bhullar for abusing his official position to compel a public servant to commit illegal acts.
Shiromani Akali Dal’s Bikram Singh Majithia said, “The AAP minister’s hooliganism, corruption and gangster threats pushed a competent officer to the brink of death and even in such a serious matter, all opposition parties had to unite and raise their voice for justice.”
He demanded that the accused be immediately arrested and the investigation be handed over to the Central Bureau of Investigation.
Bharatiya Janata Party Punjab unit president Sunil Jakhar said that after strong public protest, the AAP government was forced to register a case against the minister last night, but no arrest has been made so far. He said, “There is no hope of justice from this government” and demanded a CBI investigation into the matter.
Late Saturday night, police booked Mr Bhullar, his father Sukhdev Singh Bhullar and personal assistant Dilbagh Singh under sections 108 (abetment of suicide), 351(3) (criminal intimidation) and 3(5) (common intention) of the Indian Justice Code.
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published – March 22, 2026 07:52 PM IST