CHANDIGARH: A high-voltage band-baja protest erupted on Punjab’s streets on Sunday as senior leaders, ministers, MLAs and hundreds of Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Punjab karyakartas gathered outside the residence of Leader of Opposition Partap Singh Bajwa, targeting Congress for its alleged casteist and elitist remarks, mocking Dalits, demeaning honest livelihoods, and exposing what AAP described as a deeply feudal and dynastic mindset.
As AAP leaders moved to gherao Partap Singh Bajwa’s house, tensions escalated into a clash with the police, water cannons were used to disperse the crowd, and several leaders and workers were injured, underscoring the intensity of public anger against the insult not just to Cabinet Minister Harbhajan Singh ETO, but to the entire Dalit and working-class community of Punjab.
Cabinet Minister Harbhajan Singh ETO, along with his wife Surinder Kaur, Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema, Health Minister Dr. Balbir, Mohinder Bhagat, Dr. Ravjot, MLAs Amansher Singh (Sherry Kalsi), Kuljit Randhawa, Inderbir Singh Nijjar, Neena Mittal, Labh Singh Ugoke, Chetan Jodamajra, Inderjit Kaur, Chairman Harchand Singh Barsat, Sunny Singh Ahluwalia, and hundreds of party leaders and workers participated in the Band-Baja Protest . Simultaneously, under the leadership of AAP leader Joban Randhawa, a separate Band-Baja Protest was also held outside Partap Singh Bajwa’s residence in Qadian, Gurdaspur.
Addressing the Band-Baja Protest, Cabinet Minister Harbhajan Singh ETO said that mocking honest, hard-earned livelihoods was shameful. He said that making fun of the honest work done by someone’s father and degrading an entire community was deeply disgraceful. He stated that his father was a band master who educated his children through sheer hard work. “I studied in a government school and reached here on the basis of my own merit. Bajwa Sahib is saying that ‘we will play the band of a band player’s son.’ We have worked hard. We have not done smuggling or gold biscuit trafficking. This insult is not just mine, but of every poor family that educates its children through honest earnings,” he said.
Targeting Congress, the Minister stated that in Partap Singh Bajwa’s eyes, Dalit society was merely material that could be bought and sold for votes. He recalled that statements were made in the Assembly asking where this material came from, reflecting the Congress mindset that a mobile repairman or a poor person’s child could never become an MLA. “Babasaheb Ambedkar gave everyone equality in the Constitution, but Congress’s feudal thinking remained unchanged even today. People like Raja Warring and Partap Singh Bajwa considered themselves kings and could not digest the fact that under CM Bhagwant Singh Mann’s cabinet, six Dalit ministers from ordinary homes were doing exemplary work,” he added.
Targeting Raja Warring, Minister Harbhajan Singh ETO said that on one hand Congress leaders spoke about law and order, and on the other hand, in rallies before 1,200 people, they openly issued threats. He asked whether this was not jungle raj and said that such statements were meant to intimidate elected representatives so that children from poor families never dared to enter politics again.
Recalling his own educational struggle, the minister said that just one month after his father’s death, he worked relentlessly and passed his examination to fulfill his father’s dream. He said, “Even today, I am pursuing a PhD from Punjab University. There are 163 government schools in my constituency, and my effort is to produce one ‘ETO’ from every household. We began the education revolution to eliminate the gap between the children of the poor and the rich. Congress is afraid of this very change because they know that once poor children get educated, their politics will collapse.”
AAP Warns of Statewide Gherao if Bajwa Fails to Apologise Within 24 Hours
Issuing a warning, Minister Harbhajan Singh ETO said that a 24-hour ultimatum had been given, but Partap Singh Bajwa fled and vacated his house. “Wherever Bajwa went, AAP workers would gherao him there. If Partap Singh Bajwa did not immediately apologize, strict legal action would be taken, and in 2027, the people of Punjab would uproot this arrogant mindset completely,” he asserted.
Speaking separately, Surinder Kaur, wife of Cabinet Minister Harbhajan Singh ETO, said that Partap Singh Bajwa made vulgar remarks on their family’s profession and belittled honest work by mocking band playing. “No work was small or big and added that Congress president Raja Warring also made an extremely provocative statement. On one hand Raja Warring tried to incite 1,000 to 1,500 people sitting before him, and on the other hand, he claimed that Punjab was under jungle raj and that law and order was poor,” she added.
Addressing the Band-Baja Protest , Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema said that Congress, Akali Dal, and BJP-like parties had always promoted dynastic politics, where only a few families ruled. “The AAP had broken this tradition by bringing educated youth from ordinary homes into the Assembly and the Cabinet. He said the Band-Baja Protest aimed to expose the mindset of those who hated Dalits while sitting inside grand palaces,” he asserted.
Minister Harpal Singh Cheema said that due to the visionary thinking of Arvind Kejriwal, a major transformation had taken place in Indian politics. “After Delhi, the people of Punjab embraced this change. In 2017, for the first time, individuals from ordinary backgrounds, including doctors, lawyers, professors, and former defense personnel, entered the Punjab Assembly. In 2022, the people of Punjab strengthened this movement by giving AAP 92 seats, clearly rejecting dynastic politics,” he added.
Targeting Partap Singh Bajwa and Raja Warring, Minister Harpal Singh Cheema said that these leaders could not digest the progress of children from ordinary homes and were indulging in casteist remarks and divisive politics. “It is extremely unfortunate that the qualifications of Cabinet Minister Harbhajan Singh ETO, who is highly educated and a PCS exam qualifier, were being questioned, reflecting Congress’s belief that children from poor families should not move ahead,” he affirmed.
He emphasized that it was because of the Right to Equality given by Babasaheb Ambedkar that today the son of a rickshaw puller could become an IAS officer and youth from ordinary homes were part of the Punjab Cabinet. “CM Bhagwant Mann, six ministers from the Dalit community were part of the Cabinet for the first time in Punjab’s history. In 2027, the people of Punjab would once again teach these arrogant and dynastic parties a harsh lesson,” he asserted.
Health Minister Dr. Balbir Singh said that the anti-Dalit and anti-working-class mindset of Congress leaders had been exposed before the entire state. Referring to Partap Singh Bajwa’s statement, he said that Congress mocked hardworking people and had no respect for honest labour, adding that such remarks reflected a deeply despicable mindset.
MLA Inderjit Kaur said that the insulting words spoken against Cabinet Minister Harbhajan Singh ETO were not an insult to one individual alone, but to the entire Dalit and working-class community of Punjab. She said that Congress president Raja Warring’s violent remarks were extremely serious and demanded legal action against him. She asserted that while AAP represented ordinary people, Congress remained steeped in corruption and arrogance.
She warned that if opposition leaders did not restrain their language and thinking, the people of Punjab would not allow them to enter villages in the coming elections and would ensure victory on all 117 seats in 2027, completely ending their political arrogance.
MLA Amansher Singh, known as Sherry Kalsi, said that old political families like Congress and Akali Dal could not tolerate the progress of children from ordinary homes. “These parties believed power should remain confined within their families and that was why they referred to ministers as material and indulged in violent rhetoric. Leaders dreaming of returning to power in 2027 would face a crushing defeat at the hands of the people of Punjab,” he added.
During the Band-Baja Protest, as AAP leaders moved to gherao Partap Singh Bajwa’s residence, a heated argument broke out between party workers and the police, which soon escalated. The police used water cannons to stop the protesters, injuring several leaders and workers, and detained multiple prominent AAP leaders.