Punjab Newsline | Chandigarh
Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Wednesday launched a sharp attack on the BJP and Shiromani Akali Dal over the ongoing controversy surrounding a viral video allegedly linked to him. Addressing a press conference, Mann claimed that the owners of forensic laboratories that examined the video were threatened with FIRs and pressured to alter their findings.
Chief Minister alleged that BJP leaders intimidated forensic lab operators and instructed them to claim that they had been offered money to modify their reports. He further stated that lab owners were threatened with legal action if they did not comply. “Such politics never succeeds. Ultimately, the people will decide my fate,” Mann said.
The controversy intensified after Haryana-based forensic expert Jaspreet Jassi alleged that senior Punjab officials held a secret meeting at a luxury hotel in Gurugram on June 16, 2026, to arrange a fabricated forensic report declaring the viral video a deepfake. Purported CCTV footage from the meeting has surfaced, with claims that Ludhiana Police Commissioner Swapan Sharma and SP Jashandeep Gill were present.
Attempts to contact the officers reportedly yielded no response, while both mobile numbers linked to SP Gill were switched off. In addition, screenshots of an alleged WhatsApp conversation discussing changes to the video analysis report have emerged. However, the authenticity of the CCTV footage and WhatsApp chats has not been independently verified.
Hotel stay bills allegedly linked to DIG Swapan Sharma and SP Jashandeep Singh at Gurugram’s Crowne Plaza Hotel have also surfaced. Meanwhile, Gurugram Police have registered an FIR and arrested two individuals in connection with the case.
Jaspreet Singh, the complainant and forensic expert, released a video claiming that two Punjab Police officers offered him ₹10 lakh during a meeting at the hotel. He alleged that two forensic reports were prepared through Cyber Yan and Cipher Sentinel Labs, which he claimed are not government-recognised laboratories.
Adding to the political storm, Akal Takht Secretariat Media Advisor Jaskaran Singh stated that history has shown that anyone who challenges Akal Takht Sahib eventually faces consequences.
The controversy began after NRI Jagman Samra released a video claiming that the individual seen in it was Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann. The video allegedly showed a man splashing alcohol near portraits of Sikh Gurus and behaving objectionably towards a photograph of Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale.
While Akal Takht reportedly accepted the video as genuine, Mann has consistently denied being the person shown and maintains that the footage is not of him.
According to claims surrounding the June 16 CCTV footage, five individuals were seen meeting at the hotel around 10 a.m. Allegations suggest that the gathering was aimed at influencing the investigation into the viral video and securing a favourable forensic report for the Chief Minister. The claims remain part of an ongoing controversy and have not been conclusively established.
