Chandigarh, October 22: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has demanded that Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann publicly explain reports that he was held for nearly three hours at Delhi's Indira Gandhi International Airport on his return from Paris and fined Rs 50,000. BJP Punjab General Secretary Anil Sareen, in a statement issued by the party's Chandigarh office on October 21, asked Mann to release a copy of the challan and personally address the media on what rule was reportedly violated.

BJP national spokesperson RP Singh, speaking to ETV Bharat senior correspondent Anamika Ratna in comments reported on October 22, asked what kind of bottle Mann had brought back from abroad that required prolonged questioning and the payment of a significant customs duty. Singh also raised the BJP's allegations on Punjab's drug problem and law and order, including the killing of anti-drug activist Parvinder Singh Jhota in Mansa. Those are the BJP's allegations and questions, as reported; they have not been independently established.

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) made the original allegation. AAP Punjab media in-charge Baltej Pannu alleged in a video statement on X that Mann was deliberately held at the airport late on October 19, first on the stated ground that his luggage was still arriving or being checked, and that officials then issued a challan of Rs 50,000 as he was about to leave, saying they were under 'tremendous pressure from above'. Pannu did not specify the official reason for the challan. AAP described the alleged episode as an insult to Punjab and linked it to the Centre's earlier denial of political clearance for Mann's Paris visit.

Mann had travelled to Paris for the SIAL Paris 2026 international food exhibition, held from October 17 to 21, where Punjab products were promoted through a Markfed stall, including the SOHNA product launch. The Centre had denied political clearance for the visit, but the Punjab and Haryana High Court set aside that decision and allowed him to travel, directing that due protocol be followed. AAP has also alleged that the Consul General in Paris did not meet the Chief Minister despite the court direction - again, the party's claim.

Shiromani Akali Dal leader Bikram Singh Majithia had earlier claimed, with a different framing, that Customs officials stopped Mann and his wife Gurpreet Kaur for around three hours over suspected excess luggage or money beyond permitted limits, and that they were eventually allowed to leave in view of Mann's position as Chief Minister. That claim is also an allegation by a political leader and has not been independently confirmed.

At the time of reporting, neither the Customs Department nor Chief Minister Mann's office had issued an official response confirming the detention, the fine or its grounds, according to Nation Press and Mirror Now reporting. Awaaz Punjab is reporting each side's statements as attributed claims, not as established fact.