Decode Politics: Why Atishi video row has reignited BJP vs AAP war, Delhi to Punjab

A political controversy has broken out in Delhi and Punjab with the BJP and Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) accusing Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Atishi, the Leader of the Opposition (LoP) in the Delhi Assembly, of allegedly making derogatory comment against the ninth Sikh guru Guru Tegh Bahadur, flagging a video clip of her purported remarks made in the House.

Ex-Delhi chief minister Atishi and her party have rejected these allegations as false, alleging that the BJP “doctored” the video to “spread misinformation and hatred”.

The row has snowballed into a larger conflict between the AAP and its rivals BJP, SAD and Congress, which has been marked by protests and counter-protests in the AAP-ruled Punjab and the BJP-ruled Delhi over the last several days. It has also seen actions taken by the Punjab police and the Delhi Assembly.

On January 7, the BJP’s Delhi minister Kapil Mishra posted on social media a video clip of Atishi’s purported remarks, alleging that she insulted the ninth Sikh guru during a debate in the House last November. The BJP MLAs also staged a protest to demand the cancellation of Atishi’s membership of the Assembly. Hitting back, the AAP accused Mishra of posting an “edited” clip of Atishi’s comment.

Subsequently, protests were held by the AAP and the BJP to target each other. The Punjab police registered an FIR over the “doctored” video, even as the Opposition parties intensified protests in the state to demand Atishi’s arrest.

On Saturday, taking cognisance of the Punjab police’s FIR in the matter, Delhi Assembly Speaker Vijender Gupta issued “breach of privilege” notices to senior Punjab police officers over their “unwarranted interference with the property of the House”.

Announcing the registration of an FIR in the matter for investigation, the Jalandhar police said last Friday that they have downloaded Atishi’s purported video clip from Kapil Mishra’s X account and forwarded it to the director, Forensic Science Laboratory, Mohali for examination.

“From the video forensic report on January 9, it emerged that the word Guru was not uttered by Atishi in her audio as contained in the video clips being circulated on social media. There was a deliberate doctoring of the video to attribute words in the captions that were never spoken by Atishi,” the Jalandhar police stated.

It said the FIR was registered on the basis of a complaint filed by one Iqbal Singh, who alleged that the video clip was shared by four leaders including Kapil Mishra, SAD president Sukhbir Singh Badal and Punjab Congress MLAs Pargat Singh and Sukhpal Khaira.

In his complaint, Iqbal Singh said the clip falsely depicted Atishi making blasphemous remarks against Sikh gurus in order to provoke religious sentiments and incite hostility in the state.

The police also said they have not named any leaders in the FIR registered under different sections of the BNS and the IT Act. However, Sukhpal Khaira and Pargat Singh claimed they were booked in the case.

The controversy seems to have pitted the Punjab executive against the Delhi legislature. The Delhi Assembly has sent a notice of “breach of privilege” to the Punjab DGP, Jalandhar police commissioner and Punjab’s special DGP, cyber crime, who have been asked to reply by Monday. It has also sought the forensic report.

Delhi Speaker Vijender Gupta has said the Punjab police’s action and its forensic examination of the clip amounted to a “breach of privilege” of the House as the video was the property of the Assembly for being recorded inside.

In Punjab, a Sikh majority state, panthic matters may turn into political hot button issues. This row has flared up at a time when all major parties are gearing up for the state Assembly elections slated for early 2027. The BJP and other state Opposition parties have seized on it to corner the AAP at a time when the ruling party is going all out to woo the Sikh community. The Bhagwant Mann-led AAP government recently organised the 350th martyrdom anniversary of Guru Tegh Bahadur.

There were protests held across Punjab Saturday by the AAP, BJP, Congress and SAD over the video.

The AAP activists protested outside BJP acting president Ashwani Sharma’s home in Pathankot, Sukhbir Badal’s residence in Badal village, Pargat Singh’s house in Jalandhar and Sukhpal Khaira’s house in Bholath, demanding their arrest for allegedly sharing a doctored video.

Simultaneously, the workers of the BJP and SAD held their own protests at various locations in Punjab to demand action against Atishi.

Kapil Mishra told the media: “The video is with the media. They have the verbatim transcript of the video. Nobody can deny it. I want to tell Arvind Kejriwal that your police cannot scare us. Atishi has absconded. Arvind Kejriwal is supporting her and the video. They should better seek forgiveness for this blasphemy.”

Hitting out at the BJP, CM Bhagwant Mann accused the party of indulging in “cheap and hate-driven politics” by circulating an “edited video”. Addressing media persons in Bathinda Sunday, Mann said, “The BJP edited the video of Atishi’s statement in the Delhi Assembly and added false subtitles. None of Atishi’s statements were ever recorded in the Assembly proceedings; if they had been, the Speaker would have complete information about them. The BJP is deliberately spreading misinformation and trying to incite hatred in Punjab in the name of religion.” He added that a forensic examination established that Atishi never used the word “guru”.

“She (Atishi) never said guru… So, based on that video posted by Kapil Mishra, a person complained in Jalandhar. So the FIR was lodged by the police. The BJP has done sacrilege by adding word guru in the subtitle… They have done this in the past as well in other states by changing words or lines. But we will not allow communal harmony to be disturbed in Punjab. We believe in Sarbat da Bhala,” Mann said.

Defending the Jalandhar police, the CM said: “The Jalandhar police never took out the video clip from the Delhi Assembly… That video was taken out by Delhi minister Kapil Mishra from the Assembly. He later posted it on his social media platforms with subtitles mentioned below. It was an attempt to defame the AAP leader.”

On her part, Atishi, in a post on X on January 8, dismissed the BJP’s accusations as “lies”, accusing it of having “misused the name of Guru Teg Bahadur Ji in a wrong manner and insulted Guru Sahib”. She also posted a video of her original remarks, alleging that “But the BJP added a false subtitle inserting the name of Guru Teg Bahadur Ji into it”.

Rising in Atishi’s defence, Delhi AAP chief Saurabh Bhardwaj accused Kapil Mishra of “doing a sacrilege by faking the video”.

Punjab BJP president Sunil Jakhar kept his party’s guns trained on the Mann government on the issue, questioning the police’s alacrity to get the video examined forensically on the same day it came out on January 7.