Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann strongly rejected allegations made against him by Akal Takht Acting Jathedar Giani Kuldeep Singh Gargaj and described the move as a politically motivated campaign to defame him, talking about the same while speaking during a live address Mann said he had already denied being the person shown in the controversial video that has been at centre of the dispute and claimed that neither height nor body structure of the person seen in the video matched his own.
Mann said he was surprised that people holding such important religious positions could take what he described as politically driven decisions and alleged that false propaganda was being spread against him and claimed that efforts were being made to damage his image, he also said he was working to protect Punjab's interests including issues related to water, farmers, youth and Sikh religious values and according to him these efforts were not being accepted by some political opponents who were now using religion for political purposes.
Mann said he considers Akal Takht Sahib the highest Sikh temporal authority and has deep respect for it however he criticised what he called political appointments and political influence in decision making and said Sikh community was aware of how such decisions were being taken. Referring to recently passed anti-sacrilege law Mann said his government had faced criticism earlier for not bringing such legislation and added that after the law was introduced the government was now being questioned for passing it. He claimed that some people were uncomfortable with growing public support for the law.
Mann also questioned past decisions in which according to him individuals were forgiven without seeking an apology and later changed their stance. He alleged that no action was taken in such cases and accused his opponents of running a propaganda campaign and talking about it Mann appealed to people not to be influenced by what he described as misleading claims and said that final decision would be made by the people.
His statement came a day after Akal Takht Acting Jathedar Giani Kuldeep Singh Gargaj declared Mann as "Guru Dokhi" and "Khalsa Panth Virodhi" in connection with a controversial video and Gargaj alleged that forensic examinations conducted by two laboratories found the video to be genuine and claimed that the person shown in it was Chief Minister.
Aam Aadmi Party has rejected these allegations. Party leaders have maintained that the forensic reports do not identify the person seen in video and have termed the controversy a political conspiracy aimed at defaming CM Mann.