A new trouble is mounting upon former Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi. Punjab Chief Electoral Officer Sibin C on Tuesday said Congress leader Charanjit Singh Channi terming the Poonch terror attack, in which an IAF soldier was martyred, a "poll stunt" violated the Model Code of Conduct. As a result, Punjab CEO has written a letter to the Election Commission of India (ECI) to take further action against Congress's Lok Sabha candidate from Jalandhar.
"According to a report of the Jalandhar District Election Officer, it (Channi's remark) is the violation of MCC (model code of conduct)," Punjab CEO Sibin C was quoted by a newswire.
For the unversed, one soldier was martyred and four were injured as terrorists ambushed an Indian Air Force (IAF) convoy in Jammu and Kashmir's Poonch district on May 4. Replying to reporters' questions on the attack on the IAF convoy, Channi had said, "These are all stunts, not attacks ('Yeh stuntbaazi ho rahi hai, hamle nahi ho rahe' ). Whenever elections are near, such stunts are performed to make the BJP win. There is no truth in it."
After the political outrage, Channi said that he was proud of the country's soldiers but targeted the Centre over the 2019 Pulwama terror strike, saying the government could not ascertain who carried out the attack.
Notably, Channi has been embroiled in another controversy. On May 10, 2024, during nomination filing, Charanjit Channi met the Ex-President of the Shiromani Gurudwara Prabandhak Committee (SGPC). Seeing her, Channi on a lighter note touched Bibi Jagir Kaur's chin. This sparked a massive outrage as many felt that Charanjit Channi's gesture was inappropriate. Amid the outrage, Punjab State Commission for Women on Monday sent a notice to the DGP calling for immediate action against the former Chief Minister. However, on Tuesday Bibi Jagir Kaur came out in support of him.